Imperial Equestria
by Juggerpony
Summary: After an Imperial Blockade is attacked by Mercenaries, the remaining Imperial Naval force makes a random Hyperspace jump. Damaged beyond repair, the Star Destroyer and its crew discovers Equestria, where they are automatically thrusted into conflict with the Elements of Harmony. Takes place 7 years after the Season 6 Finale.
1. Invasion

**_ Prologue_**

**_7 years after the Rise of the Empire_**

**_Near the planet Doros, the Star Destroyer Avenger_**

**_Admiral Varinth, Imperial Navy_**

The bridge rocked again, sirens screeching throughout the whole Star Destroyer as another salvo of proton torpedo's made contact with the shields. I sat in the admirals chair on the Star Destroyer Avenger, clutching the arm rest as the capital ship rocked again from yet another salvo. It was only an hour ago I was wishing for something to actually happen, wishing to see some action.

By order of the Emporer, the 623rd Navy Division was instructed to set up a blockade around the planet of Doros. And the Doros Government was not happy with it. So here we were, the _Avenger_, the _Black Hand_, the _Carbonate_, plus 2 Imperial Frigates, fighting against mercenaries called on by the Doros militia.

I turned on my holo-comunicator, sending out a message to the other captains. 4 Holo-Images appeared in front of me, showing me the captains from the 4 other cruisers.

"Captain Nickerson, what is the enemy count?" I asked the captain of one of the Frigates. Nickerson was a young man, looking to have just come out of the Imperial Academy. He had black hair, cut to Imperial Regulation, and wore the standard olive green uniform of an Imperial Officer. He had a grim look on his face as he stood erect in his commanding chair.

"Sir, from what my Navigator tells me, we are dealing with 3 enemy frigates, 2 heavy cruisers, and at least 30 small space craft. The frigates appear to be standard Correlian Corvettes, and the Heavy ships consist of a Bothan fleet command ship and the othera Mandalorian Cruiser."

I cursed to myself. Where did these mercenaries get a Bothan Command ship from? Focusing my attention back on the 4 commander in front of me, I began giving out orders.

"Have all forward shields set to 50% power, and divert the rest to your sides. I don't want those small hand fighters to attack your side. I also want Frigates to get in a shield formation, and focus fire on the other frigates. I want all Star Destroyers to focus long range turbo lasers on the Command ships." Then Captain Farthers, commanding officer of the _Carbonate_, spoke up.

He was an older fellow, in his mid 30, and was at one point a junior officer for the Republic Fleets, helping with the siege of the planet Kashyyyk.(And I looked it up. I spelled Kashyyyk right)

"Admiral, what do we do about the fighters?" I bit my lip and tried to form up the strategy. The fighters were Head Hunter class, which were weak but agile fighters. The lasers alone would not be enough to take down even a frigate, but if they travelled in a large enough pack, they could wipe out a Star Destroyer. They were too small for turbo lasers to sight them, which made the situation even more disastrous.

"Scramble all TIE fighters. I want 5 squads of 5 TIEs to attack the headhunters. Have the rest provide cover fire for any TIE Bombers making runs on the enemy frigates. You have your orders. Admiral Varinth out." And with that, the 4 captains disappeared, leaving me alone with the rest of the bridge staff. The officer on the scanners suddenly stood and addressed me.

"Sir, another squad of Headhunters is making an attack run on our shields!" I looked out the view-port and saw them approaching. 10 Headhunters began descending on the _Avenger_, aiming for its midsection. They swiftly evaded our short range Turbo Lasers, all accept one, which blew up upon impact. As they descended, they began launching a volley of proton torpedoes, which hit the shields. But before all the Head Hunters could fire, however, one of the TIE squads rounded out and began firing on the Hunters. 2 of them exploded, and the rest quickly dispersed. Another alarm began going off, and the Attack coordinator approached me, sweat dripping from his face.

"Sir, our shields have been reduced to 10% in the front. Our side shields have been diminished. We cannot take another salvo like that!" I gulped, sweat beginning to drip down my face as I began thinking. It would only take 2 more torpedoes to disable the shields, plus any remaining bombs would tear the ship apart. Not to mention it would expose the Star Destroyer to boarding parties. I gulped as I went back to my command chair, calling up the other captains. They all appeared and began giving reports.

"My shields have been disabled, and I don't know how much longer I will be able to hold out," Captain Garanger, commander of the second frigate, reported. "Admiral, my TIES report that one of the enemy corvettes have been disabled. They will be completely down in a few minutes," Captain Farthers reported. "I believe we need to change our strateg... ahhhh!"

Captain Nickerson suddenly screamed, and his holo-image turned to static. I looked out my viewport and watched as Headhunters launched Proton Torpedoes at the Frigate's bridge. This was not good. With only one frigate left, the Star Destroyers were completely exposed to the command ships heavy lasers, which would tear through the _Avengers_ weak shield and end my military career.

"We have lost Nickerson! Captain Garanger, I need you to pull your frigate back. I will not lose another frigate. I need all long range turbo blasters to pick a target on the heavy ships. Have the TIEs go on an attack formation to take out the frigate. Garanger, I need you to use your short range lasers to defend against the fighters."

"But sir, our turbo lasers are useless against those fighters!"

"Do you want to lose your ship?" Garanger shut up at this, turning to one of his navigators as his Holo-Image disappeared. Staring out of the view port, I watched as Garangers frigate began to turn around, coming in closer to the other Star Destroyers. I shut off the Holo frequency, walking down the narrow walkway to the front of the bridge.

Another strategy officer came up to me, handing me a Holopad. He saluted and walked away as I began reading. The pad gave reports that our navigational systems and long range communications had been destroyed. Our shield was mostly depleted, and there was a breach in Hanger 5. On a positive note, the Bothan ship's shield and Hyperdrive were down, and the Mandalorian Cruiser had a major breach in its side. One of the Corvettes were seriously damaged, and a few more shots would tear it apart. The other Corvettes, on the other hand, seemed almost in perfect condition. Then I saw something that would give us an advantage. The damaged Corvette was dangerously close to the other 2 corvettes. I quickly ran over to the ship intercom, right as the ship rocked again.

"Our shields have been disabled!" One of the officers said, fear trickled throughout his voice. I cursed as I stumbled onto the comn station. I rerouted the call to go to our strategy center. "Gunnery Corp, this is Admiral Varinth. Respond." The response came almost immediately.

"This is Gunnery Officer Mari. What are your orders, sir?" I coughed and gave the order.

"Those two Corvettes that are next to each other? I need you to relay orders for our TIES to concentrate fire on the damaged corvettes main engine." The Gunnary hesitated, as if he was going to question, but apparently decided against it.

"Yes, Sir!" He signed off and I went back to my seat. The ship rocked yet again as the head hunters made another swoop, attacking the main hull. The hull was thick, however, and was able to fend off the incoming lasers. I continued to watch out the view port as a TIE squad made its way over to the damaged Corvette, taking out its engines and stabilizers.

I smiled as the Corvette began to tumble, heading straight for the healthy Corvettes. I watched as the 2nd Corvette tried to get away, but it was too late. The damaged Corvette rammed right into the center of the 2nd one, making it break apart from the pressure. A few of the other officers began to whoop, until things went downhill. A large explosion sounded to my left.

I turned and looked with terror as The Black Hand literally tore in half. Explosions rocked the Star Destroyer as it blew up, the debris showering everywhere. No escape pods. The ship had gone down with all hands on deck. Suddenly, my holo-net started beeping. I sat down and activated it, surprised to see that it wasn't one of the ship captains. Instead, the hologram of a middle aged man appeared on the screen, clothed in the Black and white uniform of an ISB (Imperial Security Bureau) Agent. He had a clean shaven face, with side burns and piercing eyes. "Admiral! This is Agent Tailon."

"Yes Agent, go ahead."

"Sir, we have multiple boarding craft heading in our direction from the Bothan Warship." I froze and stared out the viewport. Sure enough, multiple Bothan Boarding craft were heading in our direction.

"What are you r orders, sir?" The Agent asked. I thought this over in my head, trying to figure out the most effective solution.

"Agent Tailon, I need you to anticipate where those boarding craft are heading. I want a squad of troopers at each of those intervals. If one Bothan gets on board, we are done for." The Agent saluted and shut off communications. I sighed and looked again into the intense battle proceeding outside. The Imperials only had 2 Star Destroyers and a Frigate left. Only half of our original fleet.

The boarding craft closed in, landing in a multitude of spots in the hull. There were 4 of them in all. I was praying that Agent Tailon knew where those areas were. I looked forward and saw yet another relief in the battle. The Bothan ship's main bridge exploded as the TIE bombers made another run. The ship followed quickly, its remains getting caught in Doros's gravitational pull and bringing it to the planets surface. My comn came back on, and Tailons voice came over the airwaves, blaster fire shooting off in the back ground.

"We are holding off the Bothans off as much as we can. I don't know how long we will hold, though." I cursed, about to relay an order to send reinforcements, when the hyperdrive commander stood and addressed me.

"Sir, ships are emerging from hyperspace! 6 of them." A little bit of hope emerged in me at that second. The Empire was sending reinforcements to assist against these damned insurgents. My hope diminished when I saw 3 Mandalorian Cruisers and 3 more Correlian Corvettes emerge from hyperspace, and they immediately began firing on the Star Destroyers, ripping through them. My holo-net went crazy as the fleet commanders began screaming orders for a tactical retreat. The first ship to go down was the _Carbonate_, which exploded in a fiery wonder.

I began to panic. there was no way we were going to hold off such an onslaught. I went to the intercom, right as the enemy ships began to focus fire on my final Star Destroyer. "This is Admiral Varinth. I need the whole ship on lock-down. Prepare to make a tactical retreat into hyperspace!"

The first response came from the navigators. "But sir, our Navigations are haywire! We wont be able to coordinate a complete Hyperspace jump!" I quickly responded, "Better than being blown to shreds here!" the second response came from Tailon.

"What about the Bothans?" My response came even quicker as my heart rate went through the roof.

"Lock them in the room with the boarding craft and get out! The Hyper jump will tear the craft out and suck them into space!" The ship rocked and sirens blared as the Corvettes began concentrating fire on the final Star Destroyer and frigate. "We have a breach on Levels 2 and 3!" The alarm blared. The lights suddenly went out as the power cuplinks were shot out, and red emergency lights came on.

"Emergency power activated." The alarm stated. One more salvo, and we would be space dust. Suddenly, our ship began aiming upwards, away from the enemy vessels. Blue light engulfed the Star Destroyer and the remaining Frigate as we shot into hyperspace. I sighed with relief, until the ship jerked violently. "Sir, without shields, the ship is going to fall apart!" One of the officers screamed in terror.

I was about to say something when another jerk made me fly forwards, landing head first into the pit where all the navigational officers were. My head struck a computer and I began to black out. As my vision dimmed, the last thing I saw were 3 Imperial Officers surrounding me, while the rest began to run around in panic.


	2. Landing

**_Chapter 1_**

**_5 Minutes previous to hyperspace jump_**

**_Star Destroyer Avenger, Hyperspace_**

**_Agent Tailon, Imperial Security Bureau_**

I had barely escaped the confrontation with my life.

I had followed orders and taken a small squad of 10 Stormtroopers to one of the anticipated areas. We got into position and awaited the boarding party. I pulled out my Scout Commando Pistol, aiming it at the boarding door. The rest of the Stormtroopers aimed there E-11 Blaster Rifles at the door. Suddenly, the door opened, and havoc ensued.

A smoke grenade went off in front of the door, and blaster fire erupted from inside the boarding pod. One of my troopers instantly went hit, getting hit right in the throat. The rest of the squad returned fire, and I could here a few groans from inside the pod. Suddenly, the enemy stopped firing there blasters.

I raised my hand to hold fire. When nothing happened, I signaled for 2 of my men to move forward. The white armored troopers nodded, and, with weapons raised, began moving towards the pod.

Suddenly, one of the troopers dropped his blaster and hunched over, like he was punched. The other turned in surprise, when suddenly something was stabbed into his neck from behind. A vibro blade. The blade came out of thin air. That was when I realized what was happening. I fired at the air where the vibro blade had come from.

There was a squeal, and I watched as a now dead Bothan fell to the ground. I could feel the other Bothan Mercenaries in the room, and I quickly gave the order to fire. The Stormtroopers began to fire again, and I watched as 2 more Bothans screamed and went down. The rest of them materialized in front of my, pulling out blasters and vibro weapons. I turned my comm on and relayed a report to the Admiral.

"We are holding off the Bothans as much as we can. I don't know how long we will be able to last, though."Then I saw one of them draw a weapon that sent shivers down my spine.

An Incinerator Rifle, meant to disintegrate an enemy in a matter of seconds, and was outlawed by the Empire years ago. I watched as he shot multiple shots into the closest Stormtrooper. The trooper didn't even get a chance to scream as he was turned to dust by the hundreds of miniature blasters that tore his very being apart.

Acting quickly, I jumped at the Bothan, tackling him before he could turn the weapon on me. Using my elbows, I quickly snapped his neck, bringing his limp body to use as a body shield. Then, more beings emerged from the pod, but were not Bothans. 2 of them were Gamoreans, armed with Repeater blasters.

The other 3 were humans wearing purple and green Mandalorian armor, carrying standard DH Blaster pistols. I turned my comlink on as I used the Bothan's body to absorb the Gamoreans shots. "I need all troopers to fall back. We will fend them off in the main hall." Then, the Admiral spoke into my comlink, saying, "This is Admiral Varinth. I need the whole ship on lockdown. Prepare to make a tactical retreat into hyperspace!" I processed this in my mind. This meant that the battle up top was not going well. I turned the com on again as a blaster hit a few centimeters from my head.

"What about the Bothans?" The response came back quickly, as the Admiral replied, "Lock them in the room with the boarding craft and get out. The Hyper jump will tear the craft out and suck them into space." Suddenly, the ship rocked and the power went out, replaced by blaring red lights. The power had gone out.

I turned to my 5 remaining troopers and began yelling at them. "You heard the Admiral! Push them to the room!" I began running towards the blast doors, going for the lock button. They would be able to easily unlock it, but it would buy time for the Admiral. Suddenly, A big, burly hand grabbed my throat.

It was a Gamorean, his pig like snout flared in rage. I tried reaching the button, but it was too late. A loud noise sounded as we entered hyperspace. Just as the Admiral predicted, the boarding craft was literally torn from the ship, sucking the Mandalorians and remaining Bothans into the vacuum of space, their screams drowned out by the sound of air being sucked out of the pod.

The Gamorean squealed as he tried to grab at the wall, but couldn't get a good grip. I decided to act, and kicked him in the leg. He squealed again as he let go of me, and was flung into the vacuum of space. I clung to the door, knowing that I would soon be sucked out as well. I felt my grip loosen against the air being sucked into the abyss.

As soon as I let go, however, I felt a hand clasp mine, keeping me from entering space. It was one of the Stormtroopers, and he quickly pulled me against the wall. As soon as I was in the hall, another trooper closed the blast door. I collapsed to the ground, the lack of air making me dizzy. One of the troopers approached me, laying a hand on my shoulder.

"Sir, are you alright?" He asked with genuine concern in his voice. I nodded, still gasping for air. I stood, brushing off my uniform. I looked t my remaining men and began issuing orders. "I need you to secure the rest of the floors. Check on the other troopers." They saluted and began running off. I began walking to the nearest turbo lift, turning my comlink on.

"Admiral Varinth, we were able to repel the invasion. Do you copy, over?" Silence. My walk quickly turned into a run as I went to the turbo lift. As soon as I reached it, I pulled my ID out, and made pressed the button to go to the bridge. I quickly reached the top, and was surprised at what I saw. Highly trained Imperial officers were scrambling around in panic, and the Admiral lay on the ground in one of the command pits, unconscious. I looked around and began walking to the Navigator.

He was not at his post, and I began to examine his station the monitor was flashing, showing a small green dot, heading right towards large yellow dots. I racked my brain, relying on my old Navigator training to remember what the yellow dots meant. My eyes widened as I realized what they were.

Asteroids.

I quickly sat in the seat, typing in some calculations, and pressed one of the buttons. The ship slowed down, exiting hyperspace. The crew was still running around in panic, however. I stood up, shouting, "SHUT UP!" The officers all froze, turning to me, and realizing for the first time they were out of hyperspace. I climbed out of the pit and went to the observation deck of the ship. The officers, now calmed, began going to there stations, checking on the vitals of the ship. I watched as the Frigate emerged next to us from hyperspace, looking to have taken little damage from the battle.

"What happened to the Admiral?" I asked to no one in particular. "He fell into the pit, sir." One of the Black outfitted security officers said.

"Alright men, I need someone to take the Admiral to the sick bay immediately. I will be taking over as Admiral until he is fit for duty again. Am I understood?" The officers saluted and went back to work. I sat in the Admirals chair went straight to work, contacting Captain Garanger. Garanger seemed surprised at first to see me instead of the Admiral Varinth at the command chair. I quickly filled him in on all that was happening, including the shape of our ship.

"Our shields are gone, we have multiple breached, and our Navigations and long range communications are severally damaged." Garanger nodded. "I have some engineers on board my ship that could come and help with the repairs. But we will have to land to be able to take a full damage report." I nod and lean back into the Admiral's chair.

"Our navigations are haywire. Can any of you find a planet? And maybe call for support?" Garanger shrugged at me. "I can ask my navigators to find a nearby planet, but I cannot call for support. Frigates don't have long range capabilities." I cursed as I remembered. Frigates were mainly used for transporting troops and short Fighter skirmishes.

That was why they were normally accompanied by the larger and more battle ready Star Destroyer. Garanger remained silent on his holo picture as he went to figure out anything. He quickly returned though, with some startling news.

"Sir, are in the unknown region. Our star maps our useless." I was shocked. The Unknown region was beyond the outer rim. It was an unexplored part of the galaxy. Any expeditions that have gone out have never returned. The only planet that is known out there is the planet belonging to the Chiss, and we did not have a lot on them.

"But you are in luck, Agent. There is a planet not to far away with positive oxygen support. We could land and make any necessary repairs." I gave a sigh of relief. "Alright. use your navigations and begin heading for the planet. We will follow." Garanger nodded and signed out. The Frigate began to move, and I ordered the Navigator to follow. After engaging what was left of our engines, we took off after Garangers Frigate.

I quickly sat in the seat, typing in some calculations, and pressed one of the buttons. The ship slowed down, exiting hyperspace. The crew was still running around in panic, however. I stood up, shouting, "SHUT UP!" The officers all froze, turning to me, and realizing for the first time they were out of hyperspace. I climbed out of the pit and went to the observation deck of the ship. The officers, now calmed, began going to there stations, checking on the vitals of the ship. I watched as the Frigate emerged next to us from hyperspace, looking to have taken little damage from the battle.

"What happened to the Admiral?" I asked to no one in particular. "He fell into the pit, sir." One of the Black outfitted security officers said.

"Alright men, I need someone to take the Admiral to the sick bay immediately. I will be taking over as Admiral until he is fit for duty again. Am I understood?" The officers saluted and went back to work. I sat in the Admirals chair went straight to work, contacting Captain Garanger. Garanger seemed surprised at first to see me instead of the Admiral Varinth at the command chair. I quickly filled him in on all that was happening, including the shape of our ship.

"Our shields are gone, we have multiple breached, and our Navigations and long range communications are severally damaged." Garanger nodded. "I have some engineers on board my ship that could come and help with the repairs. But we will have to land to be able to take a full damage report." I nod and lean back into the Admiral's chair.

"Our navigations are haywire. Can any of you find a planet? And maybe call for support?" Garanger shrugged at me. "I can ask my navigators to find a nearby planet, but I cannot call for support. Frigates don't have long range capabilities." I cursed as I remembered. Frigates were mainly used for transporting troops and short Fighter skirmishes.

That was why they were normally accompanied by the larger and more battle ready Star Destroyer. Garanger remained silent on his holo picture as he went to figure out anything. He quickly returned though, with some startling news.

"Sir, are in the unknown region. Our star maps our useless." I was shocked. The Unknown region was beyond the outer rim. It was an unexplored part of the galaxy. Any expeditions that have gone out have never returned. The only planet that is known out there is the planet belonging to the Chiss, and we did not have a lot on them.

"But you are in luck, Agent. There is a planet not to far away with positive oxygen support. We could land and make any necessary repairs." I gave a sigh of relief. "Alright. use your navigations and begin heading for the planet. We will follow." Garanger nodded and signed out. The Frigate began to move, and I ordered the Navigator to follow. After engaging what was left of our engines, we took off after Garangers Frigate.

Within 3 hours, the planet came into view. It honestly reminded me of Yavin 4, while looking at it from space. I gave the order to begin descending towards the planet, and, with Garanger's ship beside me, we began to land. Their was surprisingly little turbulence as we descended towards the continent bellow us.

As soon as we broke through the surface, I told our navigator to land a small planes area a click to the south. We landed with a very rough bump, but at least we were still alive. I exited the bridge, and used to turbo lift to head for the exit. I emerged on the first floor and walked down a long ramp to the outside world.

I shielded my eyes as I came into contact with the suns light. After giving a small shudder, I began walking towards the ground bellow. The grass was a bright green, almost the perfect length. Everything in the area was perfect. The trees, the grass, even the clouds. I soon stepped onto the grass and turned back to look at the Star Destroyer. It was only now that I took in the full extent of the damage. There were several breaches in the hull, as well as large holes made by the boarding craft.

"Agent Tailon, I presume?" I turned around to see a black outfitted officer approach me, a holo-pad in his hand.

"That would be me." I responded. The officer gave a grim smile as he handed me the holo-pad. "Captain Garanger says he can supply up to 30 Engineers where they are needed. He has landed 2 clicks to the south, and is preparing necessary troops movements to set up camps." I nod.

"Excellent. Tell Garanger to send out a few Scouts to map the area out and report any wildlife. I want a map of our area by the time night arrives." The officer nods and begins to walk away. I look down at the holo-pad, scrolling through the backrounds and abilities of the different engineers.

I waved to a stormtrooper, whos squad was currently bringing camping supplies down the ramp. He ran over and saluted. Handing him the holo-pad, I said, "Go and take this to the Chief Engineer. Tell him that we need to get our long range communications up as fast as possible." The trooper saluted and ran off. I sighed as I looked out across the beautiful landscape.

Soon, this world will belong to the Empire. Just like the rest of the galaxy.

_**5 Minutes later**_

_**Noran Davil, 623d Scout Trooper Regime**_

I mounted my speeder bike, putting on my standard Scout Helmet. I turned and adjusted the cables holding down my E-11 Sniper rifle, making sure it was attached properly. I then sat properly in the seat, adjusting the map creator to the side of the bike. I heard an engine rev behind me and I turned, seeing the other 2 scouts that would be going with me.

"Ready to go, Noran?" One of them asked. I nod, and we zoom off, going at top speed to the West. Every centimeter we flew over was instantly put into the map creators data bank, which would be transferred to the orbital map. We continued to speed across the plain, encountering very little. Then suddenly, our group leader ordered us to stop.

The speeder bike skidded to a halt right in front of a forest.

"Too dense to move our speeders through." I thought out loud. The group leader nodded, going over to his tracker and detaching it, instead sticking it to his belt. He then proceeded to pull out his pistol.

"Move out throughout the woods. We will rendezvous on the other side." Me and my partner nod, and began to move in on the forest, pistols drawn. The undergrowth was dense, and I could barely move without bumping into a vine. My headset turned on as the other scouts began to speak.

"This is Dori. Anything to report yet?" I turned my com on. "Negative, captain, I have seen no conta... wait!" I crouched down as I saw something in the sky. I was amazed at the sight in front of me. it was a horse, or a pony of sorts. But the miraculous thing was that it was flying! A pegasus.

"Sir, I think I see a pegasus." I heard the other scout on the line snort. "Pegasus? Those things are myth. Get back to... wait, I see it as well!" I just stared up at the creature. It was majestic and beautiful, speeding across the sky heading towards... "Sir! The creature is heading towards home base." The captain cursed as he saw the same.

"I will contact headquarters. And tell them we are about to have..." He just stopped mid sentence.

"Captain Dori, do you read me?" No response. Then the other scout trooper spoke up. "Where is the captain?" I went to respond, when something suddenly grabbed my leg.

I turned just in time to see a giant plant growl at me. It looked like a Trapper plant, which were carnivorous plants on Felucia. It showed off its teeth as black vines began emerging from it, and began to tie me up. As quickly as I could register, I pulled out my blaster pistol, firing a few shots at the tendrils.

The creature screeched, and lunged full scale at me. I only had enough time to roll away as the creature dived to where I once was. I went to aim my pistol again, only to find it gone. The creature retracted, hissing a snake like tongue as it prepared to lunge again. I pulled out a Vibro blade, feeling the vibrating hum as it turned on. The creature snarled again as it prepared to lunge again.


	3. Investigation

Authors Note: I am honestly surprised by how popular this story has gotten so far. I am honestly touched by the amount of MLP and Star Wars fans there are. Anyway, I have come with another chapter, and I hope you enjoy it. The first contact between pony and a Scout trooper. Oh, and by the way, before I get any criticism, these are not the Scout troopers from episode 6. Those are a later model. The scouts I am writing about are form Star Wars Rebels. You know who I am talking about. That... is really it. Enjoy the Second chapter of Imperial Equestria.

**Chapter 2**

**Unknown planet**

**Around mid-noon**

**Noran Davil, 623rd Scout Trooper Regime**

The plant creature reared its head back and lunged. I rolled again, but the plant was expecting that. One of its tentacles shot out and hit the side of my helmet, making it break inward. I groaned in pain as the Plastoid dug into my cheek, drawing blood.

I quickly ripped my white helmet off, feeling some skin tear off with it. I clutched my now bleeding cheek, my other hand fiddling with my vibro blade. This creature was smart. And it would not miss if I rolled again. I had to do something unexpected. So I charged it, swinging my knife over my head. This indeed caught the plant off guard, making it rear back a little, which gave me the perfect opportunity.

I jumped at it grabbing the back of its head, using the momentum to swing around to its backside. Using my legs to straddle its now flailing head, I used the knife and dug it deep into its head. It gave an ungodly screech as its flailing increased, almost throwing me off. I prepared to pull the knife out to make another stab, but the plant had other ideas. One of its tentacles quickly swung around and jabbed me in my side. Hard.

I screamed in pain as the tentacle breached my armor in the side, digging into my skin. The tentacle lifted up, and, with me still attached, flung me into a tree. As I made contact with the tree, I heard my something crack against it. I was relieved to find out it wasn't my spine that broke, but I still cursed to see that the back of my armor had cracked.

I tried to stand, instead fell to the ground as pain coursed through my impaled side. Clenching my teeth, I leaned against the tree, grasping my horrifically bleeding side. The plant gave a screech of victory as it prepared to finish me off.

That was when a miracle happened. The plant, in the middle of its screech, suddenly reared back as a lightning blue streak slammed into its face. The plant looked around wildly, trying to find out what just attacked him. Then the streak came again, this time striking the back of its head. The creature lost its balance and face planted to the ground.

It shakily tried to raise its head again, only to have to shoved back into the earth by the streak. I vision began to blur from the loss of blood, and I began to weakly groan. As my vision continued to blur, I saw something approach me. It resembled a horse, or a pony, or whatever. It was the same color as the streak, with a complimenting yellow mane.

It wore nothing except for some sort of tattoo on its rear, but I was too disoriented to make out what exactly it was. My vision continued to blacken as I heard a voice mumble next to my ear.

"What are you?" My vision was almost completely gone, and the last thing I saw before passing out completely were two beautiful, majestic wings on the back of the pony. The Pegasus.

* * *

**Grounds outside the _Avenger_**

**Jerif Pier, Imperial Field Officer**

I glanced around at the men as they worked, my hands fiddling with the data pad behind my back. At least 30 stormtroopers, both from the _Avenger_ and from the Frigate, known also as the _Storm Rising_, were busy unloading multiple supplies from the Star Destroyers. Supply tents, ration canisters, and power generators were being loaded off and secured.

As the last of the provisions were being unloaded, I pulled the data pad from my back pocket, checking off the remaining items. When I saw that everything on the checklist was complete, I sent a report up to Agent Tailon, who was currently taking command at the bridge of the Star Destroyer. The report from Command came back almost instantly, giving me my next objectives. Looking at the first on the list, I turned my comlink on.

"Engineer Division, this is Officer Pier. Please report you condition, over?" A loud hissing sound, like steam, erupted through the mic.

"This is Head Engineer Toland. So, we have found the problems and can attempt to fix them. The only problem is the lack of supplies able to get the job done." I responded, "Explain." There was a moment of silence again before the Head Engineer responded.

"We will need Power Couplinks, Durasteel, and several other materials we don't currently posses. Normally, if a ship is too damaged to continue, a ship would tow it out and be take to Kuat. But unfortunately, that is not going to happen." I nod to myself, the realization flooding over me. "What about the communications relay?"

"It is salvageable, but there are a few things we need to at least make it functional again. And we currently don't have those parts." I bit my lower lip in frustration. "What is needed to make durasteel? Homemade." The Engineer sighed through the com.

"It is not that easy. There are certain machines we need, machines that our specific shipyard have. Granted, we have schematics for the machines, but we don't have the materials. Without certain power sources, anything we try to build will be useless." I bit my lower lip and cursed a bit. After a few seconds, I said, "Alright. Do what you can. I will ask our recon squads if there are any nearby villages that could possible give some assistance."

The Engineer acknowledged the order, then went to turn off his com. I waited for a few moments before I turned my com back on, changing the frequency to match those of the Recon Teams.

"This is Field officer Pier to all Scout Leaders. Please report." I waited for an agonizing 10 seconds before the first trooper responded. "This is Squad Leader Chazez with the Northern squad. We have found nothing so far, just a mountain range. We have encountered few alien life."

The next to respond to Eastern Squad, which reported the same thing. South, however, was the first to report something unusual. "We have encountered alien life. We have not engaged, but it would appear they are ponies." I was confused at first. "Ponies?"

"Yes sir, ponies. But they appear to be... intellectual. They appear to be speaking our language, and are doing activities that ponies would not actually do. In fact, they have their own little town here." I was still trying to register that our first alien encounter was a pony. When the fact that they were intellectual registered in my mind, i responded almost immediately.

"Do not engage. Examine them, and keep note on their behavior. Report any anomalies... besides the obvious. I will speak with High command about your discovery." I turned off the com frequency, ready to contact Agent Tailon, when I remembered Western Squad. I turned my com back on.

"Western Squad, you have to give your report."

No response.

"Western Squad? Do you copy?" Still no response. I bit my lower lip and changed the frequency again. "Captain Foren, how many men can you spare?" Captain Foran, who the leading command of 3 battalions of Stormtroopers, quickly responded. "I have 3 squads of 7 men available, plus 2 AT-STs and 3 troop transports. The rest of the men are busy unloading the supplies."

"I need a troop transport with a squad of your finest to be sent out to the last known position of our Western Recon Squad. They have gone missing, and need to be found as quickly as possible. Tell the men to expect hostile forces. If they encounter anything that appears to be hostile, tell them they have permission to exterminate it. Field Officer Pier, out."

* * *

**Everfree Forest**  
**Mid-Noon**  
**Lightning Dust, Equestrian Wonderbolts**

(Authors Note: If you don't know who Lightning Dust is, watch the episode where  
Rainbow Dash goes to the Wonderbolts academy.)

I approached the strange creature that laid on the ground, obviously wounded. It wore a White sort of armor, with black fabric underneath it, as well as surrounding the outside its head. Its face, if I was to call it that, was tan and flat, with a black mane only on the top of his had, and a few hairs above its lip. It had a small nose, which barely made up any room on its face.

I continued to approach it, still wary. It was a miracle I even saw the creature being attacked by the Carnivorous flower. It would have surely been killed if I hadn't of come in and saved the it, which filled me with a little bit of pride. Ever since the academy, I have honestly tried to play down my ego, but still, at times like these, I just felt awesome. I wanted to fist pump the air, and go tell my other cadets of what I had just done.

But I couldn't do that now, much to my disappointment. I had to help this creature, which was probably almost dead. Blood was pouring from its side, where I saw the flower impale it. It was also bleeding from its cheek, and I could see a piece of white material sticking out of the wound.

I went over and realized for the first time the creature was a male. I sniffed and snorted. He reeked of sweat, but I could tell he was still alive. I looked around, biting my lower lip as I tried to decide what to do next.

Do I go to the nearest town, which was Ponyville, and request a doctor, or even Princess Twilight herself? Or do I try to find another one of these things? I saw a whole herd of them earlier today, out in the plains a few miles from the Everfree. After some consideration, I decided to try to find the creatures fellow beings. They would probably know more about their own kind then even the Princess would know, I reasoned.

Then again, Twilight was a princess. I was literally having a war with myself about what I should do.

"What if this creature's kind think I am hostile. Then what do I do then?" I said out loud. When I was observing the battle, it was clear that these creatures were excellent fighters, warriors of hoof to hoof combat.

Wait, this creature doesn't even have a hoof. It has strange appendages on the end of the hoof. I shook my head. I am sure to figure everything out later. I just needed to get this creature out of here, before the Timber wolves begin to investigate the smell the blood. I grabbed the creature by the scruff, flinching a bit as he groaned in pain.

Looking in both directions, I made my decision. I picking up the man, I began to hover westward, towards Princess Twilight Sparkles Kingdom.

* * *

**Imperial Troop Transport**  
**5 Minutes later**  
**Captain Foren, 623rd Imperial Marines**

I went to the front of the cruiser, standing in between the two pilots for the Imperial Ground Transport.

"How far away are we?" The pilot continued to look ahead and steer, while the co-pilot turned to me. "We will arrive in a few minutes. Get your men ready for deployment." I nodded, turning around and coming back into the staging area.

7 troopers, all wearing pure white armor, sat in their seats, their E-11 blaster rifles in hand. One carried a heavy repeater, as well as our Anti-Armor launcher.

"Get ready to move out!" I shouted to the men, and they instantly unbuckled themselves, standing up in an erect position. The transport suddenly stopped. The doors swung open, and the men exited the ship in single file, getting into rows outside.

I was the last to step out of the transport, putting on my blue and white commander helmet. The tinted glass covering my eyes shielded me from the sun, which seemed especially bright. One of the troopers approached me, saluting.

"Sir, the men are reported ready to move out!" I nod, looking towards the dark forest in front of us.

"Sergeant, do you have the tracking scanner." The trooper nodded, pulling a small chip out of a compartment in his belt and inserting it into a slot in his helmet. All the data from the tracking device was now implanted onto a HUD screen in his helmet.

"Alright, I have a lead on one of the tracking devices." The Sergeant said, suddenly looking straight forward.

"This way." He said, before starting forward. I signaled to the other men, and we all began following the trooper into the dark woods. We walked fro a good 3 minutes, before we came upon a small clearing, surrounded by trees. A giant, black flower was in the center of it, looking to be dead. I looked over at the Sergeant, who was staring at something on the ground.

I turned and froze at what I saw. On the ground was an Imperial Scout helmet, surrounded by what looked like a puddle of blood. The other men must have seen it as well, for they suddenly gripped their weapons a little tighter. I approached the helmet, and confirmed that it was indeed a scout helmet.

"I want a perimeter around this clearing. I need to make a report of possibly dangerous life on this planet." The troopers nodded, still looking very wary. I turned my comlink on and tried to turn it to an appropriate frequency. I received static with each frequency I tuned into. Suddenly, one of the Stormtroopers flinched, aiming his rifle into the wood.

"Captain, I am detecting movement up ahead." I turn and begin heading towards the trooper, pulling my E-11 Blaster pistol from its holster.

"What kind of movement?" I asked, as the Sergeant and 2 other Stormtroopers began heading in our direction. "Uh, ground, sir. It sounds like a pack of..." His statement was suddenly cut short when a horrid screech erupted from the woods, making the wary trooper jump a little.

Then came the smell. An intoxicating smell came out from the woods, making the Sergeant, who had just showed up, gag a little. The trooper in front of me coughed a little.

"What the heck is that smell?" Before I could respond, the trooper suddenly screamed as something jumped onto its back.

It is hard to explain its physical appearance. It was a wolf, but it was made out of sticks and logs. It had sharp fangs, and I could almost see the stench coming from it's mouth. Before I could respond, the wolf creature sank its fangs into the screaming troopers neck, then bringing the now dead trooper into the woods. Then, as soon as the previous one left, 2 more showed up, growling.

"Fire at will!" I shouted, and the area erupted into chaos. The troopers all began firing at the wolves, who appeared to be shocked by the flurry of blaster fire currently being shot at them. However, as soon as the men stopped firing, I realized that they were not effected at all by it. They charged again, going for 2 of the other troopers, pouncing on them.

I began firing my pistol, almost to no effect. The 2 troopers were dead upon seconds of contact, the wolves taking there bodies away. I looked back at my remaining 4 men, who all appeared to be startled by what had just occurred.

I turned to them, and I couldn't help the panic that seeped into my words.

"All troopers, fall back to the transport before they come back." The Sergeant put a hand on my shoulder, just before I could turn and follow my remainign men out of the wood.

"But sir, what about the scouts?" I pushed his hand off and continued to follow my men.

"It is clear that they got him already. We need to get out of here before we are next!" The Sergeant seemed to hesitate, then nod reluctantly, quickly following me out of the woods.


	4. First Contact

Dear Pesky Plumblers,

I am sorry to inform you that this story has been on Hiatus for the past few months. But with the new year here, the Juggerpony has returned! That is right, i am not dead, and am back to writing stories! Expect weekly chapters to come out for this story as well as Storm Rising. So, sorry to keep you waiting, my friends. Enjoy the story, or die! Well, dont do that. But uh, if you dont enjoy the story, or have any complaints, dont be afraid to say them in the chat. I will not judge you (I will only rip your head off! Lol, jk). So, that is about it.

**Chapter 3**

**Unknown Planet**

**Around Mid-Noon**

**Captain Foren, 623rd Imperial Marines**

The creatures howled again, gaining on our position. I cursed and turned, firing a few more shots into the forest darkness. I turned and continued running. Turning my com on, I began shouting frantically into it. "Pilot, man the heavy turret! We have company."

"Roger that, Captain!" I heard another scream as another stormtrooper was taken down by one of those things. I was for sure I would be next, when all of a sudden I broke the tree line, coming right in front of the troop transport. The remaining troopers were now trying to get into the transport, their panic making them trip over each other. I turned and saw the first wolf exit the forest.

That was when the turret, which was on top of the rectangular troop transport, wheeled around, firing a heavy laser into the wolf. It literally exploded, twigs and logs shooting in every direction. The other to wolves emerged from the woods, startled to see a pile of burnt and smoking logs and twigs. Growling, they quickly retreated back into the woods.

I gave a whoop in victory as they ran back into the darkness of the woods. I turned and walked up into the transport, taking off my helmet, which was now soaking wet with sweat. The remain troopers did the same, wiping the sweat from their brows as they took a seat in the transport. The pilot turned back towards us, his grey helmet still on his face.

"What are your orders, captain?"

Sighing, I said, "Return back to base. We did what we came here to do." The pilot nodded, turning the transport around and driving it back towards the camp.

**A few hours later**

**Noran Davil, 623rd Scout Trooper Regime**

Blurry light hit my face as my eyes opened slightly. As my eyes opened more, I began noticing things around me. One was that I wasn't dead. Second was that I was on a long, comfortable bed. It must have been made out of feathers or something, because it was super soft. My head was almost completely sunken into the pillow, making me completely relaxed.

I lifted myself up a bit off of the bed, trying to remember all that had transpired before I was in the bed. When I finally did remember, I immediately went and touched my side, surprised to see that the wound was gone. And then I realized the third thing. I was no longer in my Scout Trooper armor.

I was wearing a one piece outfit, completely white. It also felt like it was made of feathers, or some other soft material. I tried to stand up, only to collapse on the floor. The room appeared to be made of crystal, which seemed odd. The crystal room had somewhat of a purple hue, making it shine beautifully. I attempted to stand again, putting all my weight into my legs.

I was able to stand this time, and stretched my arms. Hearing a restrained pop, I let out a sigh as I felt my muscles loosened up a bit. I went over to the door, made of wood instead of the crystal. It was locked and, sighing with defeat, went to sit back down on my bed.

Suddenly, the door did open, and a peculiar sight entered the room. Throughout the course of being in the Imperial military, I had seen a lot of alien species. But nothing like the creature that had just entered my room. It was a pony, a mammal that was on all 4 legs and had a tail.

It was the color purple, with a short purple and pink mane, two large wings, and a mark on its rear with a picture of a purple star, surrounded by smaller sparkles. It had giant, purple eyes, and a horn on its forehead.

When it saw me sitting there, it smiled and trotted over to me.

"Hello there! Glad to see you are awake." Ok, so it was intelligent, too.

"Who are you?" I asked. The alicorn went over to a table and her horn began to glow. Suddenly, a small group of papers levitated near it, glowing with the same color as its horn.

"My name is Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship." My eyes widened. Was this purple alicorn the matriarch of this planet? Out of respect, I bowed, which seemed to take Princess Sparkle by surprise.

"My name is Noran Davil, at your service, Princess Sparkle." At this, the alicorn giggled a little, smiling.

"Please, call me Twilight. And you don't have to bow, by the way." I stood and sat back down on my bed.

"So, your name is Noran Davil. What species of creature are you?"

"I am a human." Twilight looks up from her papers and raises an eyebrow.

"Human?" I nod. Twilight still looks confused as a levitating pencil came and began writing on the floating paper.

"Never heard of a human before. Interesting." I sigh, getting comfortable in the bed, preparing to be interrogated further.

**South of Imperial Camp**

**Palpen Zachman, 623rd Scout Trooper Regime**

I peered through the binoculars, staring at the strange sight in front of me. It was a town, inhabited by ponies doing things that ponies would normally not do. They were talking to one another, walking into buildings, transporting goods. No humans in sight. Putting my binoculars down, I turned to my two other men, both dressed in the armor of Imperial Scout Troopers.

"What have you been able to find out?" I asked the men, who I had sent an hour previously to examine the town further. One of the troopers stepped forward, saluting.

"Sir, as previously noted, they are intelligent. They seem to speak Galactic Basic, and operate like normal people would. They seem primitive, however. They do not operate on much technology, relying on a form of force energy. There are three factions, it looks like, that coincide with one another. Regular ponies, ponies with horns, and then ponies with wings. It would appear that the ponies with horns controls this force energy."

I nodded, giving the signal to remount the speeder bikes. They saluted again, getting on and starting up their speeders. I mounted mine, and we began heading northward again, heading towards the Imperial Camp. As soon as we arrived, I needed to give a report. Possibly request to engage the natives.

I heard the rev of the speeder's thrusters as we all sped off across the landscape. The landscape was a blur as we sped past it. At this pace, according to our tracker, we would arrive back at camp within the next 5 minutes. The only sound I could hear was the wind rushing past my head. I looked up to the sky, seeing the clouds whizz by.

That was, until I saw a rainbow streak dash through a line of them. It came completely out of nowhere, and it obliterated a lot of the clouds, going at the speed of light. At the head of the rainbow streak appeared to be a cyan colored pony with wings. Thinking quickly, I raised a clenched fist, signaling for my other 2 troopers to stop.

We all quickly skidded to a halt. We all got off of our speeders and ducked behind them. I pulled out my pistol, setting it to stun. One of the troopers crawled over to me saying, "Sir, why are we hiding?" I turned to him and scowled from behind my helmet.

"Didn't you see that rainbow streak? That was one of the winged creatures. Stay hidden until we are sure it wont come back around." The trooper nodded, getting back into position. As we waited behind the speeders, it became eerily quiet.

Seconds passed, but it felt like minutes. Hours, even. Suddenly, the silence was broken by a female voice that sounded behind me.

"What kind of creatures are you." Startled, I turned in horror to see the cyan blue pony, sitting on the ground behind me.

"You know, those thing you were riding are pretty fast. Not as fast as me of course, but still, they are pretty cool." The blue pony had a rainbow mane, just like its tail. On its rear end was a picture of a lightning cloud, the bolt also rainbow colored. I was seeing a pattern with this pony, for sure. Its cocky looking smile slowly disappeared when none of us responded.

"Uh, hello there?" Suddenly, a blue ring hit the pony, making her yelp in surprise and fall over, stunned. I turned and saw one of my scouts, his E-11 rifle out, set to stun.

"What do we do with her? We cant just leave her for others to find." I looked back at the unconscious pony, debating over my dilemma. If we took it with us, then it would know exactly where our base was. On the other hand, if we left it here, it would tell it's friends what had happened, causing a division between the natives and the Empire.

And with our current situation, getting on the natives bad side was the last thing we needed. I bit my lip and was about to speak, when a loud voice suddenly shouted from above me.

"What did you creatures do to Rainbow Dash!" A brown, winged pony was flying above us, a look of horror and anger upon his face. Make up my mind quickly, I raised my rifle and fired a stun bolt at the pony. He fell to the ground with a grunt, moaning on the ground. I signaled to my men to pick up the male pony, while I lifted the cyan pony over my shoulders.

"We take them back to camp. Quickly, before the locals notice any disappearances."

Strapping the bodies to the back of the speeders, we sped off towards the camp, our pace faster than before.


	5. Awareness

Authors Note: hey, guys! Sorry for the delay again, complications came up. So, I have a few questions to answer and whatnot from the comment section. One of the most common (2 Comments) would be with the timber wolves not getting destroyed by the lasers. Ok, I could have thought that one out a little better, or I could have better explained it. Yes, they were being destroyed, but they kept regenerating, and retreating. They weren't being completely being destroyed is what I was getting at. Until the high-powered turbo laser disintegrated the one, that is.

This is to Anonymous, who told me about the grandeur of the Imperial Star Destroyer. I honestly didn't know all that, which is weird because I am a complete Star Wars nerd. But here is my explanation as to why the Equestrian Military force could dominate the crew of the Avenger right now. If you remember, the Avenger was blockading Doros, before the blockade was decimated by the mercenary fleet. Most of the military force on the Destroyer would have been deployed onto the planet's surface. The AT-ATs, according to the current canon, will not be put into use until 13 years later. Because the Avenger had to leave on such short notice, there was no time to recall any of the deployed military force. But I will keep your info in mind for….. Later ;)

**Chapter 4 **  
**Canterlot, Equestria**  
**Princess Celestia**

I sat in front of my writing desk, for once clueless as to what I was about to do. For once, I couldn't think of a reason to write a letter. Normally, I would write a letter to Cadence in the Crystal Empire, or even a letter to my used-to-be pupil and now princess Twilight Sparkle.

Heck, I would even write letters to the guards on patrol, asking of any news. But at that moment, nothing seemed to come to mind. I had visited Twilight yesterday, and I doubt anything new has occurred since then. Cadence was visiting Canterlot for a little while, leaving her husband in charge of the now peaceful Crystal Empire.

And the borders have been quiet, no signs of any activity from the Changelings, which was good. I couldn't even write to Discord, for he was out of the country at the moment. Probably causing some sort of (contained) chaos. I sighed and began pacing.

Suddenly, as soon as the light left my window, I heard the flutter of wings come onto my balcony. I turned and smiled to see my sister, Luna, standing there, illuminated by the dying light. She was always the serious one, giving commands and acting as a natural born leader. She has learned over the years to loosen up and be gentle with the ponies of Equestria. But today, I could see worried lines under her eyes, and a serious gaze on her face.

"Is something bothering you, sister?" I asked, concerned. Luna looked me in the eyes and nodded.

"Something strange occurred a little while ago, and it is making me nervous. While I was tending to some matters on the moon, a large metal…. THING came out of space." I raised an eyebrow, thinking on the ludicrous but interesting words of my sister.

"A large metal thing?"

"Well, two of them, I think. One of them appeared to be on fire. Then, I watched from a distance as they descended into Equestria. The things landed in a field a little ways east of the Everfree Forest." I was becoming very interested as Luna continued explaining.

"And then, when the things landed, these….. Creatures, twice the size of ponies, began coming out. They wore this weird,

"Do you believe them to be a threat?" I asked. Luna shook her head.

"Not yet. But if we make a wrong move, that could easily change. We need to send a peace party out to them, ask them if we can assist them in any way we can. And we should do it discretely. The fewer the ponies that know about this, the better."

Again, I was impressed by the maturity of my younger sister. I nodded to her, and went over to my writing table. I knew the perfect party to send out to make negotiations. To make negotiations of peace and friendship, why not send the Princess of Friendship herself.

**Field outside of _The Avenger_**

**Jeriff Pier, Imperial Field Officer**

I watched as the sun began to sink behind the mountains, the land being engulfed in flashing light and shadow. I checked my data pad again, checking to make sure I had not made a mistake. So far, all the Scout squads had returned, all accept South and West. West was considered KIA (Killed in action), according to Captain Foren. South had yet to arrive, and I was becoming tired of waiting for them to return. The sooner they got back, the sooner I could turn my report in Agent Tailon. The sooner I turned my report in, the sooner I could eat at the mess hall.

Except for a few gray armored army troopers, I was the last Imperial on the field. The troopers, who wore light gray body armor and black half helmets, were waiting with me for the return of the final squads. Suddenly, I heard an engine in the distance, and turned to see 3 speeder bikes coming from the south. I breathed in relief, thankful to see them. That was, until I was that 2 of the speeders were carrying something.

The speeders stopped a few feet away from me, the leader dismounting and coming towards me. He stopped in front of me, erect and saluting. The scout trooper wore white armor, covered by gray armor and dirt. His helmet was white and looked like the normal troopers half helmet, except for the front, which covered his face. After a few seconds, he lowered his salute, and was about to give me a data pad, showing me his report. I took the pad, and looked over the data.

Everything appeared to be in order; surveillance of the natives, no casualties, 2 prisoners….. Wait a minute. I looked a little closer, hoping my eyes were not playing tricks on me. They weren't. I paled, and looked past the leader at the 2 objects on the backs of the speeders.

Oh no. Biting my lip, I turned back towards the commanding officer of this squad.

"Please tell me those things on the back of your speeders are not what I think they are." The Captain sighed, signaling for his men to come forward. The two scouts dismounted, heading towards the back of their speeders. Untying some ropes, they dragged what looked like ponies across the grass. Holding both data pads under my arm, I pinched the bridge of my nose, exhaling deeply. Trying to remain calm.

"You were sent on a recon mission, captain. Not an abduction mission!" The Captain grimaced a little bit, as the 2 ponies were thrown to the ground in front of me. Upon closer look, I saw that they both had wings, and had very sleek bodies. One of them, clearly a male, was a brown color, with his mane in what looked like a Mohawk. What a distasteful hair style. The other pony, on the other hand, was clearly a female. Rainbow colored mane and tail, cyan colored skin, and tomboy looking hair.

"How cute", I thought, rolling my eyes. That was when the female stirred, bringing a hoof to her head.

"Man, I have a wicked headache." She said, right before one of the troopers shot her with a stun blast. She collapsed to the floor, and started to snore. Shivering a little, I looked back up at the captain, who suddenly developed an interest with the tops of his shoes.

"Do you know what this means, captain?" I asked, forcing him to look me in the eyes. He did look up, and responded in a whisper.

"You will have to fill out more paperwork?" I was about to shout at him to not be a smart-alec, when I realized he was right. 2 more prisoners meant I would have to fill out another hours worth of reports, not to mention a second report to be sent to the cell block officers. I groaned silently, and went to speak to the captain again.

"Yes, I will have to fill out more reports. But this also means that peace negotiations with the natives will go downhill quickly. They will not like that we have 2 of their own as captives." With each word that I said, the captain seemed to shrink back, grimacing.

"But sir, if we didn't stun them, they would have known of our presence. They found us, and protocol required that we take action." One of the captain's troopers spoke up. I had to again refrain from yelling at them, and instead let all of my pent of frustration out in a quaky sigh. Of course, the trooper was right. They did what they had to do, and got out of there. I pulled the cylinder shaped comlink off of my magnetic belt, and turned the receiver on.

"This is field officer 80921, making a call to Agent Tailon." The receiver crackled, and Tailon's voice filled the audio.

"This is Tailon. Go ahead, Officer Pier." I sighed again, beckoning to some of the black outfitted troopers over to me.

"Sir, the scout squad we sent to the south has reported in. We have a small…. Complication."

"And what would that complication be, Pier?" I gulped a little, looking at the two ponies on the ground.

"Sir, the scouts were found by a few of the locals. They took precautions and stunned them." Tailon took a whole 5 seconds before answering, and when he did, I was surprised to hear that he still sounded calm.

"Where are the ponies now?"

"Right next to me, asleep." This time, it took Tailon half of a minute to respond, giving me enough time to become nervous.

"Cell block A-13 is now open. They can be kept there for now." I sighed in relief.

"Yes, sir. And what about the report?"

"I still want that report, Pier. Tailon out." I almost cursed out loud. Turning towards the black outfitted trooper, I gave him orders to take the ponies to their appropriate cell block. They saluted, and left, accompanied by the scout squad. I sighed and began to follow, putting the comlink back on my belt and pulling both of the data pads out from under my arm. Exhaling again, I decided that I would do the report.

Over some dinner at the mess hall.

The Bridge of The Avenger

Agent Tailon, ISB Agent

I leaned back in the admiral's chair, propping my chin up on my arm. I realized the gamble with keeping the ponies aboard ship, and how it could spark some suspicion amongst the locals. But this had to be done, at least until proper negotiations could be made with these ponies. I looked around me as officers mingled around me, data pads and holo transmitters in their arms.

Little progress was being made on the ship, due to a lack of necessary materials. A bunch of the breaches were filled in, but that was about as much as we could do. At least for now. As soon as the long ranged transmitters were back online, we would be able to contact a fleet to come and rescue us. Maybe take control of this planet. From what the other scout parties were able to map out, this land was rich with minerals.

If harvested, this planet could become a major outpost to the Empire. Even better, a shipyard. Since the planet we had landed on is off in the middle of the unknown region, it could open up a lot of information on local systems. Which would mean more planets to be conquered by the Empire. But enough with future visions. Right now, I had to worry about what was happening right now, in the moment.

The admiral was still in the sick bay, in a coma. He had dented his skull on the corner of the dashboard. It was a surprise that his head didn't crack open, even more so that he survived at all. Suddenly, I heard my name being called from one of the lower pits. It was from a lower ranking officer, in an olive green uniform and matching hat. He was standing over the mapping officer's workstation, a look of concern on his face.

"Sir, we are detecting multiple life forms approaching the ships perimeter!" I stood instantly, walking to the stairs that lead into the lower pit. The officer stood to the side and saluted as I approached, leaning over the console. Sure enough, 8 life forms were approaching the outer perimeter of the emAvenger/em. My blood turned to ice when I realized that only one of the life forms were human.

The rest of them must have been ponies. I could only stair at the screen as terror gripped my processing mind. They had found out about the kidnapped ponies, and they were searching for them. But eight of them would not equal a war party. They must have been scouts. Turning away from the monitors, I began heading out of the bridge towards the turbo lift. I turned my comlink on as I exited the bridge and went to an awaiting turbo lift.

"This is Agent Tailon to Captain Foren. I need you to get as many troops as you can get onto the plain outside of the emAvenger/em as possible. Tell your troops that if the party acts in violent force then you have my permission to put them down….." As the turbo lift descended towards the hangar of the Star Destroyer, I pulled a commando pistol out of a holster on my left leg, switching it off of stun.

"Permanently."

**Field outside of _The Avenger_**

**Noran Davil, 623rd, Scout Trooper Regime**

This had to be the weirdest afternoon of my life. First, I am saved by a Pegasus from a carnivorous plant. Then I was interrogated by an alicorn PRINCESS about what a human is. And then I was asked to help with negotiations by said princess between the ponies of Equis (What the planet is called) and the Empire. There were eight of us in all, which consisted of me, Twilight, 2 of her royal guards, and 4 of her friends.

The royal guards were beautifully armored, wearing a silver-like armor, with tints of purple embedded in beautiful designs on the armor. Her 4 friends consisted of a pure white unicorn with a purple mane, a yellow Pegasus with a pink mane, a tan earth pony (As they called them) with an orange mane, and a pink earth pony with the wildest hair I have ever seen. I had met them less than an hour ago, and they all seemed friendly.

The white unicorn, who called herself Rarity, was a very posh upperclassman, by nature. But she also had a very generous heart. The yellow Pegasus, Fluttershy, was a very shy pony. But if you can gain her trust, she is the kindest pony you will ever meet (This was all according to Twilight. Fluttershy has yet to talk to me, because of her being shy). The tan earth pony, Applejack, is a cowgirl. Very energetic, competitive, and athletic. And then there was Pinkie Pie, the pink one. From what Twilight had told me, she was a conundrum all in herself. She was like a pony on steroids and caffeine. 24/7 caffeine.

She was everywhere at once, bouncing off of walls. Heck, even the way she was 'walking' right now was by bouncing at a pace that matched ours. It made no sense whatsoever. But Twilight said that they all needed to come along. Because what was the princess of friendship without her friends? We were almost to the Star Destroyers crash site, and Twilight seemed anxious. When I asked her about it, she said that not all of her friends had arrived. One of her friends, named Rainbow Dash, was apparently missing. She was on a weather patrol near the Everfree Forest when she and a fellow Pegasus disappeared. I had a theory as to what might have happened to them, but I kept it to myself.

Suddenly, we came upon the field where the Star Destroyer had landed. The field itself was filled with crates and weather tents. The Star Destroter itself took up most of the field, it was so big. It seemed to cast a malicious looking shadow over the grove it rested on.

"Oh my." Fluttershy whispered next to Twilight, stepping back a little bit. Applejack whistled as she looked at the grandeur of the Destroyer.

"Well, put me in an oven and call me a baked Apple Pie. You weren't kiddin' when you said it was big." Rarity could only gawk at it. Pinkie Pie was still bouncing around, not seeming to mind. That was until she stopped bouncing. Then the strangest thing happened. Her tail started to twitch, and her head began jittering everywhere. Twilight looked a little more alert when Pinkie did that, looking up at the sky.

"Pinkie, what is your sense telling you?" Her sense? Pinkie Pie stopped twitching and brought a hoof to her chin.

"Not sure. But maybe those things know!" She pointed forward with her hoof, and I instantly turned pale. Coming down the long ramp that lead into the Star Destroyer, at least 30 Stormtroopers and 25 Imperial Army units were rushing onto the field. They had their weapons drawn.

They got into a fighting position on the field, aiming their weapons at us. Twilight's Guards, looking wary, took positions in front of the princess, baring their teeth and growling in warning.

The lead Stromtrooper, who had an orange shoulder jacket signifying his rank, shouted at us, "Make another step, and my men will become a firing squad!"


	6. Long-Awaited update (End of Hiatus)

Hehe, Hey guys!

Wow, it has been, what, a few months? 5 MONTHS? Jeez...

Viewers and subscribers, I would like to profusely apologize for not staying true to my word to give you weekly material. Lots has happened personally, and I should have posted an update before now.

So, inbetween then and now, I believe I have a better vision of how I am going to write this story. I promise that I will include better grammar into my stories, and make plot points more relevant.

The next chapter should be out soon. Oh, and by the way... PLEASE, I beg you, stop telling me about the timberwolves! Messages, upon messages, upon messages have been sent to me about the stupid Timber Wolves! I get it, I made a mistake... please, stop spamming me.

Anyway, I lets write this story together, my fellow lovers of Star Wars and MLP :) Onward, to victory!

Your loyal servant and writer,

Juggerpony


	7. Negotiations

Dear loyal Readers!

Um, I was reading through my previous chapters, and realizing just how bad my grammar was. I will try and improve it. As for this chapter, I must admit….. I don't know where I was going with this before. So, for this chapter, I will try and work with what I have got, and will continue the story. Enjoy…. Or don't, up to you, I guess.

**Chapter 5**

**Field outside the **_**Avenger**_

**Noran Davil, 623****rd**** Combat Driver Division**

Not a single sound was made in the seconds that followed the harsh order from the Imperial Captain, from both the Imperials and the Equestrians. Despite it being a few seconds, it felt like minutes were going by, and it was very evident no one knew what to do. The Storm Troopers kept there E-11s aimed and me and the peace party. Not even Foren, who I now recognized as the Captain of the Imperial force in front of us due to the single blue streak that ran down the plating of his left arm, looked to have the slightest clue as to what to do. After a few more seconds of no one moving, Foren finally decided to speak up, raising his hand and ordering his men to lower their weapons.

"Who are you, and what is your business here?"

The ponies continued to stand in a shocked silence before Twilight nudged past her guards, stepping multiple feet in front of the group. Much to my dismay, both her guards and the front line of Troopers tensed at this, as if both were eager for a fight. A fight that I knew would end horribly for the Equestrians. Then, Twilights soft but commanding voice rang out across the field, her wings unfolding slightly.

"Humans, we mean no harm! I am Princess Twilight Sparkle, representing the land of Equestria. My friends and I have come to talk with your leader, and come to terms of peace."

I marveled at the fact that she showed no fear or angst in either her posture or her voice. I looked and saw Foren step forward, his weapon hanging loosely in front of him, as he surveyed the company of ponies before him. That was, until he laid eyes on me.

"Who is the human in your company?"

I looked and saw Twilight visibly freeze, clearly not knowing how to respond. So, deciding to take the initiative, I stepped forward, saluting at the captain as I would have back in the Military Academy.

"My name is Noran Davil, Code Number 4487, member of the 623rd Combat Driver (I was saying scout troopers before, but I just realized they were combat drivers) Division."

This got an interesting reaction from Foren. His back stiffened, and he took his helmet off, revealing his sharp features and low Imperial military standard hair. His eyes went wide as he approached me.

"Wait a minute…. You were a part of the scouting squad that was reported KIA! I saw your helmet in a pool of blood….."

He continued to stare, clearly wondering as to why I was alive.

"If it wasn't for these ponies, sir, I wouldn't be alive! They saved my life when I came under attack by hostile wildlife, and nursed me back to health. I can personally attest that their requests for peace are sincere, sir."

Foren continued to stare at me, backing up a little to look back at the Princess, who was giving me a look that clearly said 'Thank You'. Before Foren could respond, there was a small commotion behind the Imperial lines. Troopers stood aside as a man in Gray and Olive Green armor stepped from the group, wearing no helmet and carrying a small Commando Pistol. I quickly recognized him as Tailon, the ISB Agent that had been assigned to assist in the occupation of Doros. From what I knew, he was a shrewd, cunning, and ambitious man. I didn't know much else about him beyond that. He stepped forward, his hands meeting behind his back as he stood in an erect position.

"Foren, Report!"

Foren turned, and ran quickly over to the ISB Agent, whispering into his ear frantically. I watched Tailons face, seeing his professional facial expression never changing as Foren gave his report. After a few seconds, Foren stepped back, and Tailon began slowly walking forward, approaching the Princess. Twilights guards, already nervous from before, took a few steps forward, until they were practically beside Twilight. Her friends also stepped forward, but not in the over protective way the guards had. Tailon kneeled down, where he was eye level with the Equestrian princess, where he then lifted his hand out.

"Princess, I would be honored to participate in any negotiations between you and the Empire."

Twilight smiled, lifting a hoof and placing it in his hand in a friendly manner.

"It is settled then! Tomorrow, we can discuss anything you need, and find your fellow humans a proper place to rest."

Tailon nodded, a subtly malicious smile coming across his face.

"I look forward to it, Princess."

**Officer Pier**

I watched the events unfold from around the third row of Troopers, and couldn't help but smile. The natives were actually going to help us. It wasn't until the so called Equestrians were out of view did many of the troopers leave the field. I however, stayed, alongside two other White uniformed Naval Security Guards. I saw Tailon walking towards the ramp, and I quickly went to stop him, pulling a data pad out of my uniform.

"Sir! The report you wanted."

He turned to me, a grim smile on his face as he took the data pad, scrolling through the reports. I stood there, silently watching him until I coughed into my sleeve.

"So, are we going to release those two pegasai tomorrow at the negotiations, sir? Get them off our ship?"

Tailon didn't even look up from my report before he stated flatly, "No."

My eyes widened, confusion coming over me.

"No, sir? But I thought…."

Tailon interrupted me by quickly handing me the data pad.

"You really expect me to hand over two pegasai over to the Equestrians, and possibly disrupt the current peace we have with them? No, we are going to hold onto them for the time being."

I shake my head, following Tailon as he continued walking towards the Destroyers Ramp.

"B-But sir! Wouldn't holding onto them be equally as disastrous? If, after they provide the materials necessary to help us out, they find out that we have been keeping two of their own captive, wouldn't they turn on us all the same?"

Tailon stopped mid stride, turning around to look at me.

"By then, I hope to have our long ranged communications running again, and then..." Tailon paused.

It took me a second to register what Tailon was saying.

"Wait…. You're not going to do what I think you're going to do….."

Tailon smirked, turning around and walking up the ramp with the two Security Agents.

"I never said I was going to do anything, Field Officer."

He then disappeared inside the ship, leaving me alone on the ramp in the cold, dark night, clutching the Data Pad tightly.

* * *

Bum, bum, BUUUUUUUUUUUM! Hehe, sorry! Alright, normally I don't add a bottom message with my top one, but I have a special announcement/contest/thingy….. I don't really know what it is, actually.

Ok, So I wanted to ask if any of you readers are Digital Artists, or are good at making thumbnails/ Story covers? Well, this is your opportunity to have your art be the cover for Imperial Equestria! So, I am making a call to ask you artists out there to make a cover for imperial Equestria! If I somehow get multiple cover possibilities, then I will choose a winner, and that winner will get to see a draft of each upcoming chapter for Imperial Equestria a good couple days before I actually release it to the public! Sounds awesome, right? No? Oh….. ok. Well, just submit any art (if your interested) to my PM here on Fanfiction! Make sure it is PG appropriate, ok?

Welp, see you next chapter!


	8. The Admiral

_**Author's Note:**_ Hello, loyal viewers! It is I, the Juggerpony, here to give you a small message!

This won't take long, because I am sure you are interested in actually getting to the chapter itself. I just wanted to say quickly that my Laptop is actually fixed now! What does this mean? Why, i can write more for you guys! Yay!

Also, shadowtrooper, I sent you a response message to your review! Hope it didn't go to your spam :)

If there is anyone who has any questions concerning my writing or material, please message me! I am always happy to talk with you guys. because I love you all!

Well, that's all I have to say. Go read the darn story!

**_Chapter 6_**

**_A Week Later_**

**_Medical Bay, the Avenger_**

**_Derik Varinth, Imperial Admiral_**

My eyes didn't want to open. The muscles in my eyelids and face felt tense, just as it did with the rest of my body. My memories came back slowly: My name, Rank, the attack on Duros, the hyperspace jump….

My body gave a sudden start, my eyelids being thrown open as I sat up in my bed. Where was I? I suddenly cringe, a pain arising from the top of my head. I lifted my tender feeling arm to it, and almost gave another shout when I felt an indent in my skull. Granted, it wasn't a deep indent, but it was there nonetheless. I groan, suddenly remembering the Control Panel on the Avenger's bridge.

As my eyes adjust to the room I was in, the ringing in my ears also began to die down. The steady beat of a heart monitor was going off beside me. When my eyes finally began adjusting, I realized I was in the _Avenger_'s medical bay, a long row of lightly cushioned beds beside and in front of me. My nerves slowly came on, the numb and tender feeling leaving my arms and legs. I looked down at my arms, seeing three IV tubes pumping a blue liquid into me. Bacta, the main healing agent for physical injuries.

There were only two other officers in the room, one to my right with blonde hair and a relaxed face, and the other in the bed parallel with mine who had a respirator covering most of his face. Over the man with the respirator was a white uniformed physician, who seemed to be in the middle of replacing one of his Bacta containers. I opened my mouth to speak to the male physician, but it instead came out as a groan, followed by a violent cough. _"This is what happens when you're in the military at the age of 49"_ I grumble in my mind. Hearing the cough, the physician turns, eyes widening as he sees me awake. Hurriedly, he replaces the Bacta bag before rushing over to me.

"Admiral Varinth, your finally awake!" _Finally?_

I try speaking again, but the dryness of my throat made me cough again. Seeing this, the physician came over to me side, grabbing a glass of water on a small table beside me, also pressing a button on a pad linked to the monitor. I chug the water he hands me, despite his urges that I drink slowly. Pursing my lips and shaking my head with a final cough, I attempt to speak again.

"W-what happened?" I managed to say.

The physician shook his head, pushing me back onto the bed slowly. "Sir, you must rest! It is not healthy to…" I interrupt him by pushing his arm off me, attempting to growl at the physician, which resulted in another fit of coughs.

"Where is Haler? Where is my first in command, I must speak to him!" The physician once again tried to calm me down, this time able to fully pin me to the bed.

"Admiral, I will say again, you must rest! All your questions will be answered when…."

The physician was once again interrupted with the blast doors opening behind him, making the now irritated male turn and stare right into the eyes of Agent Tailon. The physician almost immediately straightened, standing erect at the ISB Agent's presence. Flanked on both sides by white uniformed security agents, Tailon seemed different since the last time I had seen him. His eyes seemed more sunken in, yet the rest of his face seemed more relaxed. He appeared to have acquired a slight scar on his cheek, while the rest of his face was blemish-less.

"The Admiral has done nothing but rest for a whole week, Physician. Now, please leave me alone with the Admiral." Tailon spoke with much authority in his voice, making me feel a little uneasy. The physician looked like he was going to object, before thinking better of it. He left through the door that Tailon had entered, his last words to me being, "Just make sure to take it easy."

As soon as the physician was gone, Tailon ushered his two guards out, which they did quickly. As soon as everyone was gone, Tailon looked down at me, keeping an emotionless look on his face.

"Welcome back to the world of the living, Admiral." I shake my head as I stare at Tailon, trying to decipher what exactly the agent was thinking.

"How long was I out for?"

"About a week. That console really must've hit you hard." There was no way of hiding the subtle contempt I heard in his voice as he said that. Ignoring it, I shake my head. I had been unconscious for a whole week? What had happened since then? Where were we? Was I even still aboard the _Avenger_, considering it was in horrible shape when last I was in charge of it? I raise my questions to Tailon, who nodded and began to fill me in on everything that happened. He was very straight and to the point with his explanation, as hard to believe as it was. I didn't interrupt his story, knowing by his expression that he was kidding about any of it. The country we were in was literally run by a hierarchy of ponies.

When he finished his tale, we sat in an awkward silence for a few seconds, before I replied, "So…. Ponies?" He nodded.

"Hard to believe, I know. But because of there welcomeness and open obliviousness, they have literally given us access to everything. Over the past week, they have helped with repairs to the _Avenger, _with the help of our technicians. But think of it: when we told these creatures what materials we needed, and broke down common resources needed to make some of our most intricate repairs, they were easily able to find it, or a better substitute! From what I have seen, this planet is rich with materials and minerals. Heck, some of the minerals brought to our staff aren't even on the Galactic Data Banks!"

While mystified myself, I give the agent an irritable look. "And why does this excite you so much?"

The agents smile faltered a little, as he gave me an irritated look. "This planet is rich with resources. Resources desperately needed by the Empire. There are only a few star systems left in the galaxy still good for mining, and even those are starting to dwindle. The might of the Empire must continue to grow, and from what I have seen, this planet holds resources, even on the surface, that far exceed that of even the Kessel Spice Mines! Imagine it: an Imperial shipyard being established here!" I bit my lower lip, the idea transferring well into my mind. An Imperial outpost established out here would would be very beneficial, especially considering it was isolated in an unknown star system.

I look up at Tailon. "You are indeed correct, an outpost out here would be an amazing feet. How would the natives react to it?" Before Tailon could respond, another officer entered the room. He was a lower class officer, with the standard Olive drab uniform and hat. He saluted to Tailon, seeming to ignore my presence.

"Sir, the Princess has asked an audience with you." Tailon nodded.

"Tell her or her messenger that I will get to it as soon as possible." The officer nodded, leaving hastily. Tailon stood, brushing his shoulder gently.

"Well, Admiral, it would appear I have to leave you now. The locals ask for me." Before he can leave the room, I stand up, grabbing his sleeve. He shakes his head, saying, "You must rest." I scowl, using the officer's arm as a means to support me as I get adjusted to standing.

"Agent Tailon, as Admiral and head command of the _Avenger_ and its crew, I believe it is actually my responsibility to meet with these natives." Tailon's eyes narrowed, looking ready to protest, but instead squeezed his mouth shut. I smirk a little in victory, letting go of his arm.

"Now then. Tailon, where is my uniform?"

* * *

Whaaat! Over already? Darn it.

Sorry guys! I had intended to add a lot more to this chapter, but seeing as I havnt uploaded anything in a month, I decided I couldnt wait any more. Part 2 of this chapter (Or chapter 7) will be out shortly. Thanks again, guys!


	9. Dissent

Chapter 7

An Hour Later

Princess Twilight Sparkles Castle, Ponyville

Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship

I paced inside the main lobby of the castle, feeling a little worried and unnerved. I could feel the uneasy stares of the rest of the main 5 settling upon me, and I could practically sense the awkwardness of the moment. I had just explained to them the reason for calling down the leader of the Imperials, who had been acting rather suspicious ever since the treaty day.

"Um, Twilight…. Don't get me wrong, Rainbow Dash is one of my best friends, and I am as worried about her as you are. But…. I don't know if we should bring the Imperials into this. I mean, why would they know anything?" Fluttershy spoke up, a look of concern on her face that proved her thoughts were genuine. I stopped pacing and looked over at her, bags clearly hanging under my eyes due too lack of sleep.

"I don't know. I was just thinking last night how strange it is that Rainbow and another Pegasus go missing the same day that the Imperials make their presence known. It just seems like to big of a coincidence." I sighed, rubbing my left eye with one of my legs, feeling drowsiness start to take hold.

"I don't think the Imperials are responsible." Applejack chimed in. "I mean, despite the first encounter, we have had no troubles with 'em. We have helped 'em repair there ship, shown hospitality to them. Heck, some of those Humans were even having an Iron Pony competition the other day with some of the local ponies. If they knew where RD was, they'd tell us."

I nod at Applejack, keeping my thoughts to myself. Yes, she was correct: but something still seemed…. Off. I had only really made friends with a few of the humans: a few of the Intelligence officers and than Noran. Noran had become a very close friend, who I often talked too when not dealing with Princess matters or helping other Imperials. Behind me, the main door opened, and Spike, my #1 dragon assistant, entered, running over to me.

"Hey, Twi! They are coming." At that I automatically rushed over to the nearby window. Despite my mild distrust towards Tailon and suspicion towards the Imperials in general, I was always fascinated by there flying machines. They were unlike anything I had ever seen. Unlike the Pegasus Chariots, the air ship was bigger, with a closed off roof, large wings that stayed still at its side until landing and a fin on top of the ship. The Imperials called it a 'shuttle'. Well, it had a longer name, but I just called it a shuttle for short. The shuttle landed, steam coming out of the sides as it plopped onto the grass. The shuttle opened, and I watched as two 'Stormtroopers', as the Imperials called them, exit the craft, armed with there standard laser weapons.

Over the past week, they had plenty of time to show the weapons out. Most of the ponies were mystified, while others like me became curious. It was like a magical beam, and could burn through most outer surfaces. It scared me a little at the thought of them using the weapons for more than simple target practice on a rock.

Then from the shuttle emerged Tailon, as expected. What I didn't expect was the man who followed him. He was older than Tailon by many moons, with wrinkles on his face and bags under his eyes. He wore the Olive Green Uniform of an Imperial Officer, with what looked to be a black trench coat hanging over his shoulders and long black boots that almost reached up to his knee cap. He seemed to have a somewhat hard time walking, seeming to stumble a little whenever he put pressure on his right leg and wince in pain. Despite his painful stumbling, he still appeared to have an air of authority the surrounded him.

I jump away from the window, beckoning to the other girls to come over as I opened the castles door as they approached. I put on a nervous smile as I trotted down the stairs. My eyes met with the older mans, and his eyes widened. He whispered something to Tailon, who nodded back. As my party and the other party drew closer to each other, Tailon whispered something to one of the Stormtroopers, who in turn made a hand gesture to the other trooper. They suddenly stopped, standing at attention. My nervous smile lifts to a that of a diplomats smile as I bow slightly in respect.

"Afternoon, Tailon! Thank you for meeting with me. Who is your friend?" At my mention that the older gentleman was a friend, Tailon gave a small sniff, possibly restraining a retort.

"You as well, Princess. This is Admiral Varinth, commander of the Imperial forces. He has been absent up to this point do to injuries." Varinth looked at me, returning my politician smile with one of his one. He stood upright, bowing slightly in respect.

"Greetings, Princess. On behalf of the Galactic Empire, I officially thank you for all you and your species has done for us." My smile turns into a genuine one, as I dip my head.

"We are honored to assist you in any way." The Admiral straightened again as he turned to look at Tailon quickly, who retained his stern emotionless face. He turned to me again.

"How can we repay you for your services to us?" My eyes widened slightly. They wanted to compensate us for our help? I cocked my head a little in confusion.

"Um, forgive me, Admiral Varinth, but we don't require any pay back." Now it was the Admirals turn to look confused, his eyes widening slightly.

"Surely you jest, Princess!" I shake my head.

"I do not jest. We are glad we could help you in whatever way, and your friendship is the only compensation we really require." Varinth really looked shocked. Tailon, as before, still looked indifferent. Varinth lowered his a little.

"Princess, I… I don't know what to say…." I shake my head, about to reply. Suddenly, Tailon stepped forward, past Varinth. They way he moved made it almost seem like he was trying to one-up his superior.

"Princess, I apologize for the interruption, but wasn't there a reason you called us here?" I thought for a second, then mentally face-hoofed. How could I forget about Rainbow Dash?

"Yes, there was! Um, last week, around the time you arrived, a friend of mine disappeared. Rainbow mane, cyan blue skin, Pegasus, kind of has an ego problem?" Tailons facial expression never changed as he looked me in the eyes.

"Havnt seen her. I will tell my pilots to keep a look out for her, though." That made me freeze for a second. It crossed my mind that I never specified RDs gender. How did he know she was a female. I shake my head, trying to recover.

"Thank you, Tailon," I then turn to Varinth. "It was an honor meeting you."

Varinth actually gave a genuine smile. "The pleasure is all mine, your highness." Then, with a quick side glance at Tailon, he stated, "I hope this friendly relation can continue for many years." For a split second, I though I saw something flash across Tailons facial expression. It happened to quick for me to pick up on what it was, however.

With that, the Imperials wheeled around and walked back to there shuttle where, within a few minutes, they were flying across the sky, back to their behemoth ship. I turned back to my friends, who had stood quietly behind me the whole time. I shake my head at them, and followed them back into the castle.

Aboard the Imperial Shuttle

Derik Varinth, Imperial Admiral

There was a silence aboard the shuttle as we headed back to the _Avenger_, which was something I honestly needed. I felt split on the inside. Before the meeting, the idea of setting up and outpost on this unnamed planet seemed like a good idea. Plenty of resources, perfect isolation, a willing work force…. But after my talk with the Princess, as brief as it was, I felt the conviction to do the exact opposite. I had been in service for over 20 years, preceeding even that of the Clone Wars. I had conquered many star systems, taken severe casualties, been able to inflict heavy damage on my enemies.

So why did I feel such conviction to not conquer this one insignificant planet? I looked at Tailon, who was silently observing me.

"You have second thoughts on our plan to establish an outpost here?"

I nod. "Indeed, Tailon. I don't know why, but I feel that doing anything to this planet will result in nothing good. Not for the Empire, and especially not for the Equestrians." Tailons eyes widened.

"You don't actually CARE about these insignificant low life's, do you?" I stood a little erect. I have found that I actually do. It was something about the princess that seemed to inspire me. That she was actually genuine, not just another politician trying to gets what's better for them.

"I do, Tailon…. For whatever reason. Regardless, I feel that an outpost wouldn't be good out here." Tailons eyes narrowed.

"So, what are you proposing then?" I bite my lip, thinking.

"After repairs are made, we travel back to the Empire. Make no reference to this planet. And we clear the Nav Charts." Tailon's surprised face contorted to one of anger, his voice changing to that of controlled rage.

"So, you propose treason against the Empire? Holding information back from them could get you court marshaled!" I stand defensively in an attempt to regain my authority from the enraged ISB agent.

"Don't you understand? If the Empire is told about this planet, they won't stop at a simple outpost. It will be a full planetary occupation, the natives turned to slaves!" Tailon stood now, hands clutched into fists.

"So? It comes down to the fact that CENTCOM will find out about this, and you will be shot for treason if you go along with this! As the official ISB Agent of this vessel, I can arrest you if you do it!" I scowl at this.

"I outrank you!"

"Actually, Varinth, according to CENTCOM, I am not under you jurisdiction. I serve the Empire, and ultimately report to the ISB." My mind raced: how could I gain an angle? Then, I sneer a little as I pulled my Idiot Card (Sabaac Card)

"Well, that brings up an interesting topic: the Empire doesn't know where we are." Tailon, still indignant, continues to stare.

"So what? They will be, soon!"

"Well…. We could always leave you here on the planet. Or worse." Realization dawned across Tailons face, his eyes widening.

"Are you threatening to kill me?"

"Whether you are a member of the ISB or not, you are still on my ship. Therefore, I will do whatever is necessary to quell any insubordination." I stand a little taller, making Tailon back down a little. "Even if that insubordination comes from you." Tailons eyes narrowed, his mind racing. The deadlock was suddenly interrupted as the Pilot opened the door, making no indication as to hearing, or caring, about our conversation.

"Admiral, we have arrived at the _Avenger_." I turn, nodding to the pilot, before turning to exit the craft. As the door opens, I turn to Tailon.

"Remember, Agent, I still hold more power than you in this situation. Stay out of my way, and you can keep your job as an agent." Straightening my trench coat, I depart down the ramp, leaving an enraged Tailon alone on the ship.

FOB, Imperial Camp

Jeriff Pier, Imperial Field Officer

I was doing my standard stock check when Tailon began coming over to me. The past week had been long, but busy. The ponies regularly came by, a little to my distaste, to help clean up the _Avenger_ and fix her up. Tailon was right: these ponies were good for work. I saluted as Tailon approached.

"At ease, Pier." He growled at me, clearly agitated. I lower my hand.

"Might I inquire as to why you are upset?" Tailon rounded on me, and I noticed just how pissed he looked. It was more than merely agitation: he was down right enraged.

"The Admiral proposes treason!" My eyes widen, and I ask how. Tailon went on to explain everything to me, which made my mouth curl in disgust.

"What do we do about this?" Tailon bit his lip, shaking his head.

"I don't know. The Admiral won't start the cruiser back up, so we have little chance of getting to the Empire that way…" Then, an idea popped into my head.

"The Long Range comms!" Tailon looked me in the eyes, smiling.

"Excellent work, officer! When will they be completed?" I shake my head.

"I would have to check, sir." Tailon nodded.

"Do what you must. And be discrete. We don't know who is truly loyal to the Empire anymore." I nod, about to go before stopping to look at Tailon.

"And what of you?" Tailon looked at me with a truly malicious look on his face.

"To rally those still loyal to the Empire. Pier, we have a lot of work to do."


	10. Invitation

**Chapter 8**

**2 Weeks Later**

**Imperial FOB, Equestria**

**Caramel Dust, Royal Guard to Twilight Sparkle**

It had been almost 3 weeks since the Imperials had come to Equestria, and from the outside, everything seemed peaceful between the Equestrians and the foreigners. Major repairs had been made to their strange space craft, thanks to the materials and equipment from the ponies and the minds of the Imperials. Consistent talks were had between Princess Sparkle and the Admiral of the foreigners, and many of the lower class officers conversed with the guards and other Equestrians. In fact, just the other day, some of the Imperials on there "Speeder Bikes" raced a group of Pegasai (the bikes won).

However, everything SEEMED to be peaceful of the outside. While some imperials converse friendly like with the locals, others send glares at us. Many of the Stormtroopers only carried on with Military drills, ignoring any contact with us. And then there was Tailon, who seemed nice at first, but was slowly starting to show signs of cold segregation. He was always in conversations with other officers who seemed to give us the cold shoulder, and constantly giving the friendly admiral glares. The princess had asked me and a few others to keep an eye on them.

I was drawn out of my thoughts as a large buzzer sounded in the main yard of the Imperial FOB, which was located right in front of their massive Star Destroyer. I gazed in marvel at it, the sight of it always taking my breath away. That was, until a blue hoof nudged my orange side.

"Hey, Caramel, your zoning out again." Flying Colors, a fellow High Guard, said, a hint of humor in his soft and medium pitched voice. He was about my height, with Aqua blue fur and a shortened dark mane with matching colored wings. I shake my head.

"Yeah sorry about that…" Flying rolled his eyes with a chuckle.

"Come on, let's get this over with. Maybe if we get it done quick enough, we can stop by the Ponyville Pub, and I'll get you a nice Wheat Ale." I look at him, giving a small moan as my attention is automatically brought away from the Destroyer.

"I can already taste it! Let's go." I prance ahead of him, making him give a slight giggle before coming behind me. As we draw closer to the camp, we retain a more professional march. In the center of the encampment of tents and crates were a squad of Imperial Stormtroopers, doing their daily drills. I looked around quickly for who me and Flying were looking for, before he nudged me again.

"Over by the ramp." Sure enough, the Admiral stood there, looking to be in a heated discussion with Tailon, the Imperial Security Agent. As we approached, they saw us coming and stopped conversing, the Admiral giving Tailon a cold look before looking at us.

"Ah, messengers from the princess…. Twilight, I believe?" I nod. The guard of Princess Sparkle could be told apart from the others by the purple and gold armor, which contrasted the sun gold of Celestia's, the night blue of Luna's, and the crystal ponies of Cadence.

"Yes, Admiral Varinth. I bring news from Princess Sparkle and the high ruler, Celestia." Varinth's composure remained cool, but his eyes didn't hide his obvious surprise. To my knowledge, Varinth had only met the High Ruler once, and it was more of an introduction than anything. The only real consistent contact Varinth had with the Equestrian Royalty was Princes Sparkle, who in general was a very friendly and diplomatic presence.

Tailon quickly stepped forward, eyes narrowed and voice seemingly agitated. "What is it? Me and the Admiral were in the middle of discussing something." At this, Varinth turned on Tailon.

"Tailon, why don't you go find Pier, and get me an update on the ships comm systems." Tailon's face flushes, and he walks away with an indignant huff. Flying coughs slightly next to me.

"I don't mean to be rude…. But Tailon always seems upset. Maybe he should have a talk with our Princess…" Varinth gave a saddened sigh, watching as Tailon rounded a corner.

"I don't think even the princess of friendship can help him…." After a few more seconds, he shakes his head and looks back at us. "Now, what is it you needed to tell me?" I give a small start attempting to remember what it was. Luckily, Flying saved me by stepping forward, looking very orderly and composed.

"Admiral Varinth, the Princesses have requested that you and your chief of staff attend a banquet at Canterlot by the end of this week." Varinth's saddened gaze rapidly turns to that of curiosity.

"A banquet? Whatever for?" This time, I step forward to speak, earning me a small side-glare from Flying as I interrupt his professional swing.

"It is meant to be more of an official welcoming from the leaders of Equestria to your Galactic Empire. It will be held by sunset in the main hall in Celestia's Palace in Canterlot. Attendance is not mandatory…. But the Princesses request you do come." Varinth gives a thoughtful smile.

"Of course, it would be an honor to attend… I will come with a few select officers." Me and Flying smile at this.

"The princesses will be very pleased to hear of this. We will await your arrival this coming Friday." Me and Flying bow out of respect to the Admiral, and we trot out of the bustling camp. As soon as we are out of sight of the camp, Flying gives me a small punch in the shoulder with his hoof.

"You know, you didn't have to interrupt me. I was doing a great job." He pouted playfully, making me chuckle.

"Well, I didn't wanna seem like dead weight…. But I guess I'll make it up to you." I say with a playful smirk, laying a hoof on one of his wings. "I'm buying drinks tonight." Flying looked at me as though he would object, before stopping and shrugging with a smirk on his own.

"Fine by me." He gives a small flutter of his wings before trotting ahead. I giggle slightly, before closing my eyes and following him as we go off along the trail back to Ponyville.

**Imperial FOB, Equestria**

**Jeriff Pier, Imperial Field Officer**

I exited the recently finished Tubo Lift leading from the camp to the inside of the _Avenger_, checking my data pad with a smile plastered on my face. I looked around the field, attempting to find Tailon. It didn't take long, as Tailon rapidly turned the corner, heading straight for me. He didnt look happy. I salute to him, standing erect.

"Sir! I have a report for you on the condition of the long ranged transmitter."

Tailon continued walking, his clenched and angered face showing little signs of being affected by what I just said as he pressed a button on the Turbo Lift, calling for the lift to come and pick him up. Clearing my throat, I give him my report.

"Well, um, the report just came in that the long range communications are operational, and can reach as far as the malastare system." As I said this, Tailon suddenly wheeled on me, eyes still angered.

"I know…. I was there when they tested the connection 3 hours ago." This made my eyes widen.

"Well, sir…. If that's the case, why are you not more excited?" This question made Tailon's left eye visibly twitch.

"Well, after it was made official we CAN contact help, all level 9 and above officers were given orders that the communication systems were off limits to anyone…. By order of the Admiral. He has established a guard on the main communications hub, and explicitly told me that I was not to go near it." My face flushed red as I felt my anger boil inside of me.

"W-what?! He can't do this! How does he expect us to get off of this force-forsaken planet!" Tailon looked away, snarling.

"He doesn't…. He has made friends with these bloody natives, and is now telling us that we need the rest of the ship prepared before sending us back. He says he doesn't want the Imperials discovering this planet, and as such doesn't want to bring the Imperial Fleet here to rescue us." \

Breathing heavily in order to control myself, I turn away, pinching the bridge of my nose.

"So…. what do we do now?"

Tailon sighs as the Turbo Lift beeps, the door sliding open.

"I don't know…. All I know is that the Equestrians are inviting us to some feast or something. All the high level officers are going…" Tailon then paused, thinking as he stepped into the lift and placed a hand in front of the door in order to keep it from closing. I give him a look.

"What is it?" Tailon's angered frown suddenly lifts a little as the door starts to close.

"All the high level officers will be away on friday…." That was when the door closed, leaving me alone yet again in front of the lift.

"What are you going to do, Tailon?" I mutter to myself, before turning away from the lift, walking away to ponder what he had said.


	11. The Beginning of the End

**Chapter 9**

**Night of the Banquet**

**Canterlot, Equestria**

**Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship**

I hummed to myself as I trot into the main banquet hall, smiling slightly. Everything was coming together: from finding the perfect musical group, having perfect silverware placement, and in general a lot of other work. It kept me busy…. Which was good. Busy kept my mind off RD. She has been missing for so long. Nobody has seen her since the Imperials came, which made my suspicions of them ever more apparent. I mean, people like Varinth were trustworthy enough. But then there were people like Tailon, Pier, and others who seemed to want nothing to do with us, and have even shown blatant disregard and segregation towards us. It was very distasteful.

Regardless of my personal feelings, though, they are still guests, and Celestia requested to actually meet these strange creatures. I sigh, shaking my head as I try and focus on the task before me. The banquet was just about complete, and the only thing remaining would be the Ptincess herself showing up, as well as the Imperial Guests.

"You seem distracted, Princess." I give a small, surprised jump as I heard the voice behind me, turning quickly to see Caramel Dust, one of my most trusted Royal Guards, have a similar reaction.

"Oh, I'm sorry to have startled you." He suddenly stammered. I give a small cough, standing again with a small giggle.

"It's fine, Captain…. I was just deep in thought." He gazed at me with light, caring eyes.

"Is it about Lady Dash again, your highness?" I sigh, nodding.

"You know me too well, Captain." This makes him chuckle slightly, as he responded sith a genuine smile, "well, that's why you put me in charge of protecting you, my lady." I smile at that.

Caramel was indeed one of my most trusted guards, and Captain of them to boot. He was a close friend, who would give his life for my protection. I tilt my head downwards at him respectively.

"I appreciate it, Caramel…. And actually, I have a job for you. Can you be in the main square to greet the Imperials when they arrive?" When I said his first name, Caramels orange face blushed slightly, and he gave a small uncomfortable chuckle.

"Your will is my command, your highness." And with that, he respectfully bowed and trotted over to Flying Colors, telling him something before the both of them exited the room. I roll my eyes, a humored smile spreading as I watched the two of them walk out. I turn back to the set table, breathing out a shallow sigh. The table ready to go, I realized my work was done. Thinking quickly, I turn towards the kitchen, heading there to see if Pinkie needed any help with the food.

**_The Avenger_, Equestria**

**Jeriff Pier, Imperial Field Officer**

I take a deep breath, straightening my uniform as I stood outside of Varinth's quarters. Whatever Tailon had planned, it was happening tonight. I only knew some of the plan, but Tailon refused to let me in on the whole plan. When I questioned him on it, he simply told me that I knew what I needed to know, and that that was good enough.

I suddenly stand erect as the door opens, and out steps Varinth, grey haired and cleaned up for the banquet. He gives a small start as he sees me stand there, but recovers quickly as he stands at attention as well.

"Ah, Pier. Is it time to go already?" I nod at him, lowering my head slightly.

"Yes sir, the transport is ready to go." At this, Varinth nodded, stepping out of his room and walking down the hall with me steadily behind him. It only took a few minutes before we were in Hangar Bay D, a small Imperial Patrol Transport ready for lift off. Inside the transport were 4 other officers, 2 black uniformed stormtrooper officers, and 2 Stormtroopers meant to act as an escort. As we approached, Varinth leaned over and whispered to me.

"Where is Tailon?" Doing my best to mask my sudden paling of my face, I retain my calm and professional voice as I respond confidently.

"Sir, I meant to inform you that Tailon would not be able to join us tonight. There was a small incident that occurred in the Barracks about an hour ago, and he needed to handle it." Though not looking thoroughly convinced, Varinth nodded and stepped into the transport, myself close behind him. I take a deep breath as the transport lifts into the air, the repulsor engines shooting the small transport towards Canterlot. Whatever was going to happen, it was about to happen right now.

**Agent Tailon, ISB Agent**

I watched as the transport left the hangar, hands behind my back as I stared at it until it was out of view. I then wheel around, facing the two black uniformed Stormtrooper Officers behind me, standing at attention.

"Has the guard on the room changed?" I ask. One of the officers takes a small step forward.

"No, sir. A small guard detail stand inside and guard the outer perimeter of the Communications room. There is a total of 9 men, all confirmed to be traitors and a part of Varinths rebellion." I nod at this, starting to walk away from the viewport window towards the barracks, the officers following close behind. It didn't surprise me that the guards were all certified to be loyal to Varinth over the whole of the Empire. It really was a pity.

"Foren, is your men ready to move to retake the ship?" Captain Foren, the other officer behind me, nods.

"Yes, sir. We have identified and tagged most of the known traitors. Fortunatly for us, most of the Stormtrooper Corp is still loyal. The only traitors come from the Combat Driver and High officer departments. I also have a team of men getting ready in Barracks H preparing to storm the communications center."

At this, I smile some, coming to stand in front of the door leading into Barracks H.

"Excellent work, Foren. Have your men get into position: Don't make any moves until I give the order. I don't want a transmission being sent to Varinth and the bloody natives that would come to his aid." Foren nods, saluting before departing as I give a sigh and press the switch next to the door to the barracks. So it begins.

**Caramel Dust, Royal Guard to Twilight Sparkle**

"Do you really think she could be into me?" At hearing this, Flying Colors slowly turns to me as we stand on the open grass in the Palace Garden,

"Excuse me?" He says with a concerned voice. I blush slightly as I bashfully flick my left hoof back and forth.

"I-I mean…. You think the Princess might actually like me? Like, like LIKE me?" I grin slightly as Flying rolls his eyes.

"Come on, you know she has the hots for the OTHER Royal Guard." I groan at that.

"Ugh, Flash Sentry…. Nice guy, but not really her type." At this, Flying raises an eye brow.

"And YOU know her type? Or that you are her type?" My blush deepens as I wheel on him.

"Oh, dont even, Flying! I AM her type!"

Flying looked as though he was going to respond, when suddenly a whirring sounded in the distance. We turned towards it, and saw as a small craft approached from above. I instantly recognize it as the Imperial Patrol craft, meaning the guests had arrived. I stand at attention, Flying following suit.

"We will discuss this later." I whisper, making Flying silently glare at me before standing in erect again. As the craft landed, I automatically recognized Varinth as he exited the craft, followed by several other officers I had seen over the past few days. I bow slightly.

"Admiral, the Princesses await you in the main hall." Varinth smiled, surprising me as he bowed respectfully back at me.

"Well, lead on then. Wouldn't want to keep the Princesses waiting.

**Agent Tailon, ISB Agent**

It wasn't very long before I was marching down the hall towards the Communications Center, about 12 Stormtroopers and a Black uniformed Officer trailing behind me. As we approached the corner to the communications center, I raised my hand, signalling the squad to halt. Taking a deep breath, I round the corner alone. At the end of the small hall was the door to the Communications Center, two White Uniformed Security Officers guarding the door. They were unarmed, but carried holstered blasters on their hips. The second one of them spotted me, they both stepped forward.

"Agent Tailon, this area of the ship is off limits. Please turn around." I stare at them, taking note that their hands were dangerously close to their weapons.

"In the name of the Empire, I order you to stand down and let me pass." I growl at them, giving them one final chance to back down. They made the foolish mistake of ignoring that order.

As soon as the first security guard began pulling out his weapon, the Stormtrooper Officer rounded the corner, firing his E-ll at them. One of the three bolt fired slammed into the first guard, sending his lifeless body back from the blast as it hit the well. Before the second one could even realise what was happening, the Stormtroopers rounded the corner, firing a multitude of bolts into his body.

"Hey, I hear blaster fire!" A voice shouted from inside the room, and the durasteel door blocking us from the Communications hub opened, the curious face of a Security officer poking out. Within a second, that officer was lying on the ground, a blaster bolt leaving a smoking hole in his chest and shoulder. I stood there, unmoving as I watched the stormtroopers storm the hub, the security not even standing a chance as they were quickly overpowered by the Imperial Forces. I step into the hub, taking note that all of the traitors were dead, with only one stormtrooper groaning on the ground in need of medical attention.

"Sir, the hub is ours!" The officer exclaimed, smiling as the stormtroopers set up a small perimeter around the room. I grin as I step over to the Long Range Comm, my hands trembling slightly at the sudden power at my hands. Finally, after weeks of planning, the Empire would truly score a major victory.

I worked to adjust the frequency on the Comm, my heart stopping slightly as the closest connection beeped with a signal in the Geonosis System. The signal was Imperial.

Suddenly, a garbled but clear voice came across the waves, and I gave a triumphant smile as I heard the words.

"This is Admiral Zinel of the Imperial Armada over Geonosis. State your business, and why you are contacting over a restricted Imperial frequency?"


	12. The Betrayal

**Chapter 10**

**CENTCOM Headquarters, Coruscant**

**General Callahan, 58th Imperial Ground Assault**

The durasteel door slid open as I entered the office of Grand Moff Cinzero Gann, one of the most prestigious commanders of the Imperial Fleet in the Inner Rim. Amassing at around 50 Star Destroyers and hundreds of lesser cruisers just orbiting Coruscant, capital of the Galactic Empire, the fleet was impressive, and always seemed to remind me of just how small I was in the face of the Imperial Military. As I stepped into the room, flanked by two of my black uniformed Storm Commandos, I gazed at the size and state of it. It was big for an Office, with a large black table with a spherical Hologram projector in the center. The walls were a rhythmic black, red, and gold, with two large Imperial banners flanking the side walls. Sitting at the back of the room, in one of the chairs around the table, sat the Grand Moff himself. He was perhaps in his early 40s, with brown hair cut short under his Imperial Cap. He wore the standard Olive green uniform, with his rank displayed by the multi-colored patches on his chest. His skin was fair, and had gleaming grey eyes, which seemed to stare right into me. I shivered slightly, standing at attention from the opposite end of the table.

"General Callahan of the 58th Imperial Ground Assault Force, at your command, sir." I say, staring at the Admiral. He simply sat there, twiddling a writing utensil in his fingers as he thoughtfully bit his lip.

"General Callahan…. You have an impressive track record. You successfully led the charge of Dantive V, as well as leading many Storm Commando Operations. Is this all correct?" I continue to stand there unmoving.

"Yes, sir." The Moff nods, standing up and slowly walking around the table towards me, making me slightly nervous. However, I remain unmoving as my eyes follow him.

"Good. Now, I have a task for you and the 58th IGA. Recently, a previously thought rogue Star Destroyer made contact with the Imperial Armada over Geonosis. Apparently, they are in unknown space, and have discovered the coordinates to a suitable, resource rich planet." My eyebrows perked slightly as the grand Moff continued slowly walking towards me.

"Yes, I heard that there was a rogue Star Destroyer that fled the battle of Duros…. But what does this have to do with me and the 58th? We are stationed in the Inner Rim, and Unknown territory in more of the Outer Rim Imperials responsibility." At the mention of the Outer Rim Imperial Fleet, Gann's eye twitched slightly, making me regret my words.

"I realize this, and the Geonosis Armada has already sent a Destroyer to the coordinates under the command of Admiral Zinel. Fortunately for me, one Destroyer is all that Grand Moff Tarkin is willing to give to assisting the crew on this isolated plans." At the mention of Tarkin, I finally understood what Gann was getting at. It was never a secret that the Grand Moffs, the Sectional Governors of sectors throughout Imperial controlled space, were in constant conflict with each other. They were always battling for control over more planets, and in constant competition for the Emperor's attention. Tarkin, who was the Grand Moff of the entire Outer Rim, was the Emperor's favorite.

"I understand, Grand Moff Gann. You desire me and the 58th, along with some of your Destroyers, to go to this rich and isolated planet, and claim it in your name." At my supposed understanding, Gann actually was able to give what I assume was a smile.

"Exactly! So, what do you say, Mr. Callahan?" Still unmoving, I raise my arm in an Imperial salute.

"Sir, I would be honored to head up this assignment."

"Excellent! Now, a shuttle is waiting to take you to the _ADRIAN_, where you and 3 other Destroyers will go to the coordinates. Captain Fulcron is waiting for you to arrive." I salute again, turning to leave when the Grand Moff raises his hand, as if to say one more thing.

"Another thing…. Reports came in from the stranded crew that the natives have a certain mystic power on there side…. While I don't believe in this mystic nonsense, the Emperor is sending someone to assist you against this particular threat. You will be picking him up from the Taris System…. And please, don't anger him by any chance. He is the Emperor's right hand man." Those final words made me freeze for a second, before I turn and nod.

"Yes, Grand Moff."

**Banquet Hall, Canterlot**

**Caramel Dust, Royal Guard to Twilight Sparkle**

I stood behind my Princess, unmoving and at attention as I monitored the table. Everyone was seated and eating. Celestial arrived as Varinth did, resulting in the two leaders meeting for the first time. Besides being obviously nervous, Varinth was very chivalrous and courteous to the Princess, resulting in the night going well.

Despite everything going off alright at the start, there were three things that seemed off to me. One of them was the Stormtroopers, 4 of them total, and each one standing at unmoving attention by the doors. The second concerned the fact that two of the Black Uniformed officers didn't even attend the dinner, but rather opted to wait outside the hall with a few of Celestia's guards. The final was with Pier. The normally active Officer was very fidgety and seemingly nervous. He sat quietly next to Varinth, barely touching his food and just staring at the utensil in front of him.

"So, how go the repairs on your space ship, Admiral?" The soft and caring voice of Celestia rose above the small chatter around the table, and made Carinth look up with a smile at the alicorn.

"I believe repairs are coming along very nicely…. The materials your ponies have provided have greatly benefited us. Though, Pier would know more of the specifics on that, yes?" At the mention of his name, and his already squeamish state, Pier quickly glanced up, eyes wide as though he was startled out of deep thought.

"Y-yes, repairs are going ahead of schedule… Um, the ship should be fully repaired within the week, if this good luck keeps up." His response was quick, revealing his lack of being calm. This earned him a concerned look from Varinth and a few of other Imperial Officials, but somehow not from the other ponies. Celestia merely smiled as she took another bite.

"Oh, that is wonderful to hear! Though…. Are you feeling well, Pier? You seem a little paler than usual." Celestia's blunt comment on him being pale made his paled face flush slightly. Then, he made an attempt to stand up, and I noticed his breathing was a little heavy.

"I'm fine…. But may I go out for a second? I just need some fresh air." Pier blurted, earning a suspicious glare from Varinth. Celestia, still appearing oblivious, nodded her approval, and Tailon exited the room through the door leading to the Royal Garden.

I gaze down at my princess, seeing that, unlike Celestia, she reflected the concerned look Varinth previously had. She made a small motion with her hoof, and I lowered my ear to her mouth.

"Follow him, and see if he needs anything." She whispers, and I nod, bowing respectively at Celestia as I head towards the door Pier exited from. The Stormtroopers on either side of the door seemed to glare at me as I left, resulting in me glaring right back at them. I trailed down the hall, deciding to follow Pier from a distance instead of directly coming in contact with him.

He eventually exited the hall, going under a green arch as he entered the gardens in the direction of his Patrol Transport. Being quick, I ducked behind a bush. I noticed that the color had returned to Pier's face, though he still looked very fidgety. I was about to head back into the castle, when I suddenly heard voices. I peek out from my bush, and was surprised to see Pier conversing with one of the Black Uniformed officers. I sneaked behind some more bushes, coming within earshot of the two.

"-reported in, Tailon has taken control of the ship. All the traitors have been rounded up and are being held in the detention level of the ship. Tailon has also made contact with the fleet over Geonosis. A friendly fleet will be arriving shortly to rescue us." My eyes widened as I heard the black uniformed officer report to Pier.

"Excellent…. Use the comm and inform him that things are going well at the banquet. I hope to keep the fools occupied until the fleet arrives." I slowly start to back up, cursing to myself. So, the Imperials were not all as nice as originally thought….

My thoughts were suddenly interrupted as I felt myself suddenly go limp in a flash of blue light, and I fall over. I try to let out a yelp, but can't manage it, as it feels as though every nerve in my body is overpowered by some strange, fleeting energy. The other Black Uniformed officer slowly approaches from behind, his weapon leveled at me. My blood ran cold as I saw Pier run up from where he originally was, his face pale again.

"Twilight's guard! Trooper, eliminate him at once." The Officer looked hesitant, glancing behind him.

"Sir, killing him could alert a patrol…. We need to get him out of here quietly." Pier, looking nervous, glanced at the trooper, then down at me.

"Alright…. Take him in the Transport back to the Destroyer. Have him locked up with the other Equestrians. But when Tailon gives the order, have him killed with the others." And with that, Pier readjusted the cufflinks on his uniform and turned around, striding back into the banquet hall.

My mind was a mess, scrambled, scared and unsure. What was I going to do? I needed to warn the Princess! Then, I thought of nothing as the officer above me hit my face with the butt of his rifle.

**Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship**

I was conversing with Varinth about Imperial culture when Pier reentered the room. He seemed just as nervous as when he left, though his face did seem to fluster a little bit more. As he sat down at the table, I raised a hoof to pause Varinth mid-sentence as I look at Pier.

"Pier, where is my Captain, Caramel Dust? He was supposed to come out and check up on you." Pier, for the second time that evening, seemed a little startled as many at the table suddenly fix their eyes on him.

"Caramel? Never saw him. I went out to get a breath of air, and came back in." He stated confidently, though his eyes betrayed him. Celestia caught onto this, turning away from her conversation as she looked Pier straight in the eyes.

"I sense you are not telling the whole truth, Pier…." Varinth turned on him, eyes narrowing.

"Pier?" I noticed his arm started to twitch, the other hand almost crushing the fork he was clutching.

"I… I swear I haven't seen him." He stammered a little more, resulting in Varinth standing up. Time seemed to slow for a second, and I noticed that everyone seemed to tense up. Especially the Stormtroopers near the doors.

"Pier, what are you no….." Suddenly, Pier stood up, his blaster being drawn from his hip as he screamed.

"FOR THE EMPIRE!" And with that, he fired at Varinth. Thinking quickly, I raise a shield in front of him, but it was too late. While my shield blocked a bolt heading for his chest, it wasn't up in time to spare him from the bolt to the shoulder, which made him yelp as he fell backwards, unconscious. That was when the room erupted into chaos.

While the friendly Imperials and Equestrians gawked at what was happening, Pier dashed out of the room, leaving the door wide open. The StormTroopers began firing on the people at the table, bolts cutting through one of the Imperials and an Equestrian Dignitary. Noran Davill, sitting in front of one of the Stormtroopers, turned and tackled him into the wall, punching his helmet off and putting him into a choke hold on the ground as he wrestled the gun out of his hand. Celestia, looking very ticked off, fired a charged yellow beam at another trooper, sending him flying through a window and out into the dark night with a scream. The other 2 troopers, seeing as they were outmatched, turned and ran after Pier.

"They are heading towards the Gardens! Quickly, summon the guards and seize them!" Celestia shouted, resulting in her guards automatically giving chace. I knelt beside Varinth, who was out cold on the ground. At this time, Noran was off the ground, the weapon of the unconscious trooper now in his hands as he started to follow the guards out of the room.

"Come on, Twilight!" I stood there for a second, before turning and chasing Noran down the hallway towards the escaping assassins.

**Princess Luna, Princess of the Night**

I sat on my tower, hearing the commotion below me. I rush to my perch, and see chaos ensuing. Some of the Imperials were having a firefight with some of Celestia's Guards,a s well as a few other my wings, I was about ready to jump down and assist. That was, until something happened. A strange shiver went through my back. The last time I had had a feeling like that was when the _Avenger_ crash landed…..

My eyes widened, and I rushed over to my telescope, peering through it into space. I usually used the telescope as a means to calm myself, gazing at the beautiful night sky with the twinkling stars. This time, however, what I saw didn't calm me down. Instead of the warm glowing stars, I saw a sharp blue light, followed by a large, grey triangular ship, almost identical to that of the Imperial ship. I gasped and staggered back a little as I was overtaken by the unmistakable feeling of terror.

Another Warship had arrived.


	13. Escape

**Chapter 11**

**The ****_Avenger_**** Crash Site**

**Caramel Dust, Royal Guard to Princess Twilight**

I groggily open my eyes, shaking my head as I try to see where I am at. I feel the air whisking by, implying I was in the air. As I become more aware of my surroundings, I notice one of the Imperials who had attacked me looming over my body, not noticing I was awake yet as he stared outside. We were in the air transport. I groan, attempting to stand, before feeling the metal tip of the blaster touching the back of my mane.

"Don't even think about it." The Imperial snarled, hitting me slightly with the weapon. I grunt, growling.

"Why would you do this? What is the meaning of this utter betrayal?" The Imperial's only response to my question was a loud "Shut up", followed by a harder crack to the back of my head. I wince and groan in pain, not attempting to stand again as I submit.

Suddenly, I felt the ship descend, and I look outside. We were at the site of the Avenger. As we land, I feel the Imperial above me kick my back.

"Get up!" I groan in pain as I'm forced to my hooves, and pushed outside. I look around the Imperial Camp, a little confused at the site. Stormtroopers were everywhere, standing at attention with weapons at hand. On their knees, several Imperial officers and troopers sat with there hands behind their heads, guarded by a few Stormtroopers every few lines. About 20 people in all, I recognized several of the officers on the ground as those who had been friendly to the Equestrians.

"Sergeant, what is this?" A voice suddenly sounded, and I recognized the armor of Foren as he strides up, rifle in hand as he gazes down at me. The sergeant stands erect, saluting.

"Sir! I have orders from Pier to deliver this Equestrian spy to the brig…." Foren, who's face was impossible to interpret due to the helmet, suddenly looked up at the officer.

"Yes, and do you realize that Pier has been calling for an extraction for the past 5 minutes due to the ship being gone?" The officers eyes widened as he heard this.

"H-he is? What happened?"

"His cover was apparently blown when they questioned him as to where one of the Princess's guards went…." Foren looked down at me quick while sighing through his helmet. "And I'm going to make the assumption that this is him." The sergeant who had brought me in looked dumbfounded, taking him a moment or two to register the situation.

"Alright…. Foren, take the prisoner to the brig, I need to go and….."

"No." Foren seemed to snarl from under his helmet, pushing the once again dumbfounded sergeant out of his way as he stomped to the transport, several other Stormtroopers following in pursuit as they climb into the machine. "YOU will take the prisoner to the brig, I will extract Pier." The sergeant didn't even get to respond as Foren's transport took off and started heading to Canterlot, followed by at least 3 other similar transports that had lifted off the ground.

Still in a daze, the sergeant didn't even try to be mean to me as he lead me at gunpoint into the Star Destroyer. "The one we helped these Imperial's build," I grumbled to myself. It didn't take long before we descended into the ship, to a darker area I had never known existed before. The so called brig was a prison of sorts, a long hallway with rooms flanking it. Each room had a red energy that separated whoever was inside the room from the freedom of the hallway.

"In here." The sergeant said, still in a semi-daze as he shoved me into one of the rooms. I collapsed, and the red energy turned on before I could even stand up. The consistent blows to my head and back were starting to take there toll, my energy drained as I could only really glare at the Imperial as he walked down the hall. I sigh, laying down on my side as I stare at the whirring energy gate in front of me.

"Don't even try to ram through it." A voice sounded behind me, and I jumped in surprise. The voice was weak and dry, but still clearly feminine. I searched for the origin of the voice, only to see a small Pegasus, curled up in the shadowy corner of the cell.

"I have already tried ramming through it several times…. It hurts you more than it does the gate." The Pegasus chuckled slightly, before erupting into a massive coughing fit. I approach her, my eyes running over her. It was hard to see in the shadows, but I could clearly make out her cyan blue coat. I then almost did a double take as I recognized her mane and tail color. Rainbows.

"Lady Dash!" I gasp, my eyes widening as I gazed upon the pony who had been missing for almost 5 weeks. As I got closer, I saw just how horrible she looked. Her stomach was sunken in, and she looked malnourished. Her once beautiful eyes were bloodshot and sunken in, as if she hadn't seen a wink of sleep in many days. Her cyan coat, while indeed recognizable, seemed faded, and the same could be said for her mane.

At the sound of me addressing her name, she instantly looked up, and she squinted in the dark. "Wait….. Caramel?!" I smiled slightly as she recognized me. I pad over to her, looking at her as she attempted to stand, needing to lean on the wall next to her as she does so.

"Dash, what have they done to you?" I come over to her, wrapping a hoof around her and letting the weak pony lean into me. She coughs again as she attempts to talk.

"Well…. The darn creatures captured me…. Brought me to wherever the heck we are right now…. I tried escaping, but it only resulted in that magic gate stunning me. They fed me very little, and they havnt brought me anything in 3 days…. I had to conserve water from that pitcher over on the table there, and…. And…." She suddenly stopped, seeming to lose herself in her thoughts.

"Lady Dash?" I asked, before she suddenly grabbed me, looking me in the eyes. "How is Twilight? The others? Have these creatures invaded Eqiestria yet?!" I was so startled by her sudden movements that I stumbled a little, making us both fall to the ground.

"N-no…. But from what I heard, there was fighting that started less than an hour ago." Dash's eyes widened, not even seeming to mind the fact I had dropped her. "Only less than an hour ago? What happened in the weeks that I've been cooped up here?" I sigh, laying on my side next to her as she gazes at me questingly. Over the course of an unknown amount of time, I proceeded to tell her everything that had happened over the past 5 weeks, about the Imperial's, and about their plans for Equestria.

**Royal Garden, Canterlot**

**Noran Davil**

**I** crouched behind a bush, another blaster bolt shooting over my head as I grip my E-11. The skirmish between the Imperial's and Equestrians seemed deadlocked, with neither side moving from their defensive area. On one side of the garden, Pier and at least 3 other Imperial's were firing continuous shots at the door leading into the castle. On the other side was me and several of Celestia's and Twilights royal guards, including Twilight herself. Due to the fact that the blasters were ranged, the Pegasai were grounded, which really seemed to irritate Flying Colors, one of Twilight's guards, and the Earth Ponies couldn't run at them. The only ones who could fight back were the unicorn guards, who returned fire with magical blasts of energy. Twilight was doing the same, a magical shield raised to protect many of the Equestrian Guards.

I take a deep breath, before glancing over my bush and firing a few shots in the general direction of the Imperial's. None of my shots hit their marks, but I did drive one of the Stormtroopers from behind cover, where a Unicorn blast caught him in the helmet. Thae trooper collapsed, the shot part of his helmet now covered by a small plume of red lit smoke. I duck again as more shots went over my head, cursing silently as I realized the cartridge in my rifle was empty.

I take the clip out, ready to replace it as I heard something suddenly overhead. A shiver runs down my spine as I recognize the distant whirring of an Imperial Patrol Transport. I look up and see the transports, 4 of them, at least a mile or so out.

"Twilight!" I shout, getting her attention as she stops another volley of bolts from hitting a unicorn. I point my rifle in the direction of the incoming craft, which she saw after a second or two of looking. Looking quickly to Flying, who was crouched behind a bush next to her, she shouted something at him that was drowned out by the continuous laser fire. Flying nodded, signaling to a few other Pegasai as they run inside the castle. Twilight looked back at me, nodding in a way that clearly showed that the situation was being handled. As the transports got even closer, I silently hoped that she did have things under control.

**Captain Foren**

As Canterlot got closer and closer, I couldn't help but sigh. While these creature were lower beings, they were still intelligent and kind. It felt wrong to betray them as we had. "Oh well," I thought to myself as I pushed a clip into my E-11. "Orders are orders."

The air whisked past us as we got ever closer, the sounds of battle could be heard in the distance. Then, a voice sounded from a ships internal intercom. It was the pilot.

"Sir, we have 5 bogies incoming, and the number on the radar is increasing….. 7….10…" I glance out of the side of the transport, and saw the pilots 'bogies'. Several colorfully armored Pegasai were flying right at us. I pull my comm up, addressing not only my pilot, but all the transports. "Evasive maneuvers! Weapons free!"

With those orders, the transports all began doing evasive maneuvers, just as they were drilled to. Unfortunately, these drills were to avoid ground to air fire, and avoid lasers from enemy ships. How would these work against, for the most part, unarmed Pegasai?

Next, the Stormtroopers on the transports began firing there weapons at the incoming Pegasai. From what I could make out in the darkness, almost none of their shots hit.

"They are too small and quick, Captain! We can't hit them." One of the Stormtroopers on my ship shouted. I looked at him and snarled.

"Wait for them to get closer, darn it!" It was then that the enemy started to attack. The transport suddenly shook and rocked, throwing me off balance slightly. All the Stormtroopers grabbed for a side railing, none of them falling off the transport.

"What the heck was that?" I shouted into my comm.

"Sir, the Pegasai…. They are ramming into our ship!" As preposterous as it sounded, I looked out and saw it was true. The small, tight flying Pegasai were dive bombing and ramming into the sides of the ships, which didn't seem to hurt them all too much. Fortunately, it didn't seem to hurt us too much either. I laughed slightly.

"Is this all the Equestrian Air Force has to muster?" I chuckle, right before a small voice shouted back at me, "Your darn right!" I turn, and am knocked to the ground as a streak of green and blue literally flies inbetween the openings on the transport. Besides hitting me, the Pegasus also knocked into 3 of the other troopers onboard, two of them screaming as they tumble off of the transport to the ground below.

"WATCH THE DOORS!" I shout at the three remaining Stormtroopers, who quickly recovered from their shock and took defensive positions at each door. The transports, while fast, were unarmed, except with Proton Torpedos, and didn't have closing side doors. They were mainly used to police civilian areas and as a recon vehicle, not for air combat. Why hadn't I requested TIE support?

I had underestimated the Equestrians.

Looking out of the side door, I saw that the other transports were having the same problem we were. The Pegasai kept darting in, attacking any troopers apt hat stuck their head out of the transport before retreating to a safe distance away from the lasers. I watched as two more troopers fell from one of the other transports, their screams echoing into the night.

As I looked down and watched their bodies disappear, I saw that the landscape greatly changed. Instead of the darkened green land, rocks and a castle gate came into view. I smiled slightly as we arrived within Canterlots walls.

**Noran Davil**

While the Pegasai had put up a good fight, the transports still arrived, hovering over the battle. The large spotlights shone down on the Equestrian side, blinding us as we looked away. I could hear the transports landing, the sounds of blaster fire increasing from there side as Stormtroopers exited the craft. I heard at least 2 ponies on our side groan in agony, probably shot. I looked to my side, away from the lights. As I had predicted, two unicorns lay dead on the ground, their bodies littered with burning holes as the rest of the Equestrian Guard hid. Even Twilight had to take cover, unable to concentrate on a shield spell with the bright light hitting her.

The light then went out, and I was able to look at the battlefield entirely. At least ten Stormtroopers were now on the field, firing on us without stop. I could see Pier boarding one the the transports, looking worse for wear as the transport then took off alone, heading back in the direction it had come from. From what I could make out, a small squad of Pegasai were closing on it, harassing the vehicle as it escaped.

"Move out, Stormtrooper Corp!" A voice shouted from across the green, and, as instructed, the troopers quickly began climbing back into the transports, continuing to shoot at us in order to maintain cover fire. I lifted my weapon, shooting a stormtrooper in the back as he attempted to climb back into the ship. He slipped, falling off as the transport lifted off, following the others as they all retreated. As they left, the Equestrians all came out of cover, watching them leave. Across the battlefield, I could see at least four Stormtroopers dead, as well as five Equestrian guards. Twilight came up to me, her eyes filled with furry.

"They are escaping! I want my remaining Pegasai guards to follow me, we are going after…."

"No, Twilight." A soft voice sounded near the door into the castle. Everyone turned to see a very troubled Celestia. Where had she been?

"But princess!" Twilight began, before she was hushed by the raise of Celestia's hoof.

"We have bigger problems…. I just spoke with Luna." Twilights eyes seemed to dim, the furry seeming to burn out as she gazed into Celestia's eyes.

"What is it, Celestia?"

"More Imperial's have arrived in their warship…. They are currently in the sky." I paled, looking up into the night sky. Where the moon was, a dark but massive silhouette sat in front of it, in the triangular shape of an Imperial Star Destroyer. How had I not seen it? Next to me, Twilight gasped.

"Oh no….."

Celestia nodded grimly.

"Twilight, Luna and I need you in the throne room. We need to prepare for war."


	14. The Brewing Storm

Chapter 12

_The Torrent,_Admiral Zinel's Flagship

Agent Tailon, ISB Agent

It felt good to look upon a Star Destroyer in space again. I give a small, genuine smile as the Imperial Shuttle approaches the massive ship a small TIE escort following behind the shuttle. As the shuttle enters the main hanger, I see two lines of stormtroopers, at least twenty men long on each side, with an aisle in between them. In the center of that aisle, near where the shuttle was just touching down stood the Admiral. He wore the olive uniform of an Imperial Fleet Commander, with a chubby like face that matched his slightly robust (though not overweight) body structure. He wore no cap, instead revealing his perfectly combed and regulated brown hair. As the shuttle makes a complete landing, I walk over to the exitting ramp, my back straight as I maintain proper Imperial Protocols.

"Admiral Zinel, I assume. A pleasure to be aboard a space-bound craft again." I say this with complete earnest, stopping in front of the Admiral. On the contrary, the Admiral merely grunts and turns around, starting to walk out of the hanger. I follow close behind.

"This whole debacle is a mess." Zinel said without the slightest hint of amusement or emotion in his voice. "I already have Tarkin breathing down my neck to quell the bloody natives on Geonosis, which is already a mess due to being given inadequate field officers. Heck, I'm almost ready to ask permission to simply gas the planet and be done with them! And then this happens, and I'm forced to leave the rest of my fleet to rescue you!" I decide not to say anything, though I do distance myself a little from the grumbling Admiral. We enter a turbolift, the Admiral pressing a button to go to the command floor. We stand there in an awkward silence, with the Admiral just glaring forward, and myself trying not to trigger him any more.

The turbolift door opens to a hallway, which we walk down until we reach the bridge. Much like the _Avenger_, the bridge consisted of a large viewport room, with two two pits separated by an aisle where the bridge crew and consoles sat. Once enter the busy room, the Admiral sighs and turns to me.

"I read the transcript you sent me, and forwarded it to my superiors. Are there really valuable resources on this planet? As well as an agreeable workforce?" My eyes light up slightly, my ambition flaring up yet again as my find is recognized.

"Yes, Admiral. They are overly friendly, and naive. They have resources on that planet that is ripe for the plundering, enough to put even the Kuat Shipyards to shame." At that, the Admiral actually snorted, shaking his head.

"So, this means you propose a full scale invasion, then?" My face flushes as he asks me this.

"Indeed, Admiral." I say confidently, returning his cold stare with one of my own. The Admiral just looks at me, before shaking his head.

"I didn't come here to assist in any invasion, Agent. I came to extract you and your crew. If you want an invasion force, you'll have to bring it up with Grand Moff Tarkin." My face pales as he says this. That was not part of my plan. My face then flushes red as I grow slightly angry.

"I don't have time to schedule an appointment with Tarkin! For this to be successful, we need to act now and take them while they are still unaware of our intentions!" The Admiral wheeled on me, poking a finger into my chest as I back away in surprise.

"That is incorrect, AGENT. They are YOUR intentions. My orders from Tarkin were clear: extract your crew and return them to the Imperial Station on Delvar for questioning, and then return to my post at Geonosis. Those are my orders, and I will not deviate from them. Do I make myself clear, Agent?" I flinch at his harsh words. This man wasn't weak hearted like Varinth. This was a steel boned Imperial Commander, not a Republic artifact.

"Yes….. Admiral." I say, nodding quickly. Just then, my comm link started beeping. I look down at it on my belt, before unclasping it. I look the Admiral in the eye as I hold the receiver.

"Tailon receiving." I spoke in the same tone I had to the Admiral, who was now walking towards an officer in one of the pits who was silently beckoning to him. On the comm, I was met with a slightly frantic voice.

"Tailon! This is Pier. We are under attack by the Equestrian forces!" My eyes widen as Pier, in a frantic voice, begins explaining the situation. Even the Admiral looks up from the pit, listening in on the conversation.

"My shuttle just touched down at our FOB, and all of the traitors you rounded up are revolting! Equestrian Pegasai are dive bombing and kicking our men before we can even aim! I guarantee it won't be long until their main fighting force arrives." I bite my lip, silently cursing to myself.

"Hang in there, Pier! Have all of your men evacuate to the inside of the _Avenger_ and remain there! Help is coming." With that, I signed off, looking over at the Admiral, who seemed to have what I could only assume was the closest thing to an amused face without actually being amused.

"Peaceful and naive, eh?" He said, making my eyes narrow as he turns towards the ship's intercom and makes an announcement to prepare all fighters.

_The Avenger_, Equestria

Jeriff Pier, Imperial Field Officer

"This way!" I shout as I beckon to the remaining troopers outside. Dead Imperials littered the ground in front of the STar Destroyers ramp, as well as Pegasai who had failed to dodge any of the blaster bolts. The traitors had risen up the moment the Equestrians came into view, tackling or strong arming their guards and grabbing their weapons. Most were killed before they could even touch their guards, but that didn't stop a good number of them from firing on the remaining Imperials on the field. With the Pegasai dive bombing Stormtrooper Corp, the only viable option was to do as Tailon said: barricade ourselves within the Star Destroyer.

The final remnants of fighting were on the ramp, where the troopers defending those running into the destroyer were just now turning to retreat. Only one of the four Stormtroopers defending the ramp ever made it in, the rest either shot or kicked off the ramp by a pegasus that dashed by. As soon as the final man was in, I sealed the airlock. A few Pegasai tried flying into the massive closing doors, but were shot down by the line of Stormtroopers that awaited just inside the door. When the door was finally shut completely, I looked around at the small group before me. The thirty to forty men before me were the final men to have come on the original _Avenger_ crew. I look around at them all. Then, an idea came to mind. I pulled out my commlink, tuning the frequency.

"Engineering department, can you read me?" Many of the men from Engineering had befriended the Equestrians, and were probably outside, dead or helping the Equestrians break in. However, that didn't mean they all were.

"Falcar speaking, what do you need, Pier?" The loyalist in engineering asked.

"The ship is nearly completely done with repairs, correct?"

"Yes, sir, the ship is nearly done…. However, there were some final tests that i wanted to do before we did a take off." Just then, a pegasus tried flying through the viewport window. No joke, he just tried ramming it. A few more pegasai came over and attempted the same thing.

"Engineer, reroute all power to the engines and stabilizers. We are going to try to break orbit." THe engineer was silent, as though he would object, before audibly sighing.

"Yes, sir."

Caramel Dust, Royal Guard to Twilight Sparkle

"What was that" Rainbow Dash groaned, laying against the side of the wall as the ship began to tremor slightly. I look up groggily, laying on the cold and metal floor of the holding cell.

"I don't know…." I wrack my mind over what was happening. The downed ship almost seemed to be…. Moving. AT this realization, I instantly stand, looking around.

"The ship is taking flight."

_The Torrent,_Admiral Zinel's Flagship

Agent Tailon, ISB Agent

"Pier, this is Tailon. Why are scanners showing power being rerouted to the _Avenger_'s engines?" I ask into the comlink as soon as the scanning officer alerted me. The voice I received back was distorted, but still somewhat audible.

"Tailon, the traitors and Equestrians are attempting to break through the viewport on the bridge! I had to do something, and the engineers told me this thing would fly. It is better for the warship to be in the air than a sitting mynock on the ground!" Pier responded. The door behind me opened as Zinel exited from the main strategic room of the bridge, coming over to the intercom station.

"Attention, all TIE Pilots! Launch Order 0-10 is in full affect! I repeat, all TIE Pilots are to disperse and assist the _Avenger_!" Within a few seconds, I could make out the small, agile fighters leaving the side hangers on the Destroyer, heading down to the planet's surface.

"Pier, Zinel is scrambling TIE fighters near your position to escort you out. Blasted fool, you should have waited for reinforcements!" I shout into the commlink, before turning it off and putting it back onto my belt. Suddenly, the scanning officer stood within the pit, turning to Zinel.

"Sir, something is happening to the _Avenger_! A power influx just happened within their main power core!" I turn my head at this, walking over along with Zinel. The power core was severely damaged during the initial landing, and was rebuilt completely within Equestria, using their supplies and our schematics. Was the Equestrian supplies not as formidable, or useful, as I had originally thought?

"So, what is happening to the core? Is the power source malfunctioning?" I ask the scanner, who shook his head.

"Negative, sir….. It seems like the Core is working TOO well…. All of its energy was devoted to the engines and stabilizers, causing them to overload!" The comm officer next to us heard this, immediately tuning his comm to that of the _Avenger_.

"Attention, _Avenger_ crew! Our scanners are reporting that your engines are overheating! Divert power to another source, now!" The officer stated, rather frantically. He waited for a few seconds, before turning to us.

"I can't reach the _Avenger_!" I quickly turn away, pulling out my comm and pressing the receiver.

"Pier, your ship is overheating! You need to divert power away from the engines and stabilizers!" When he responded, the call was even more garbled, the _Avenger_ having just entered the planet's atmosphere.

"I don't know how to do that! I'm only a field offic….." In the middle of his sentence, Pier's line was cut off by what sounded like a large explosion, followed by sparks, then silence.

"Pier? Pier, do you read me?" I shouted into the receiver. The scanner turned to me, and my face went white as he gave me a report.

"Sir, the _Avenger_ has lost power and its engines are blown. The ship is going down!"

Caramel Dust, Royal Guard to Twilight Sparkle

The whole room rocked, sending RD and myself flying to the floor. Within a moment, the lighting and energy door powered off, now replaced by an ear grating siren. I shake my head, recovering from the blow as I looked around.

"Dash, the door is disabled!" I shout, looking down at her. While still weakened, she was up with a few seconds, leaning into me. Using each other as a crutch to help the other, we trot slowly out of the cell, down the dark hallway. While we couldn't really see where we were going, we just kept moving forward. The doors were all opened, and we continued along our path, the blaring siren hurting our ears as we searched for a way off the ship.

"Oh Celestia…" Rainbow breathed as we turned a corner, and I looked away. The hallway was a distorted mess, the bodies of three stormtroopers laying sprawled across it. They weren't moving.

"We need to get out of here, now!" I say to her, which she didn't seem to object to. Suddenly, amidst the screeching siren, there was another sound that hit our ears. The sound of wind, and tearing metal. We turned, and saw a breach in the hull, nothing to big, but big enough. I laid Lady Dash down as I trotted over to investigate. It looked as though it was burned, and wind was rushing in. I quickly realized what was happening. We were in the air. And we were plummeting down.

"My lady, can you fly?" I go over to her, who stands up, looking back at her wings, before giving me a painful smirk.

"I can fly…. Any day…." She trots painfully over to the hole, feeling the escaping air hit her face. She seemed a little reluctant, but then bore a confident look on her face, just as I remembered from the cocky pegasus. She gets on my back, to my confusion, and then orders, "Run out the hole. I'll fly." I look back at her, eyes wide and fearful. My stare was returned with that confident stare. I gulp, looking at the hole, air screeching out of it. With a shout, I run forward, closing my eyes as I leap into the whirlwind.

As soon as I leave the ship, I am suched into the escaping air and wind flying back without control. I yelp loudly as I spiral out of control, my only comfort being Rainbow Dash, who is still clinging tightly to my back.

"Knees in!" She shouts over the torrent, in which I do immediately. Then I feel the air current change, and we start gliding. Rainbows wings were outstretched and glided us out of the maelstrom. I look down, watching as the Star Destroyer plummeted to the ground, nose first, fire engulfing the whole vessel. My eyes widened as I saw how close it was to impact.

Jeriff Pier, Imperial Field Officer

My eyes opened to the sound of sirens blaring, my head resting on the ground. I quickly and groggily stand, feeling unbalanced as I lean against a blackened the viewport was undamaged, the rest of the bridge looked like a bomb had gone off, with consoles sparking and black scorch marks staining the steel floor. The bodies of the staff I had on the bridge were all on the ground, dead. I look outside of the front viewport, watching without a single emotion as the Star Destroyer collided with the ground, and fire consumed his vision.

Caramel Dust

The explosion of the _Avenger_ was massive, the heat coming from the explosion catching the nearby trees on fire. The blast was huge, and quickly coming towards me and the flying Pegasus on my back.

"Nononono!" Rainbow shouted as we were caught in the force wave caused by the explosion, sending us flying towards a group of trees and the ground below. The force of the blast was big enough to throw RD off my back as we plummeted to the ground. I attempt to angle myself towards her, and attempt to grab a hold of her again, but it was too late. We hit the tree line, and I lost site of Rainbow as I crashed through tree limbs, which all snapped, until I hit the ground.

I groan in pain, unable to stand as I start to black out. My eyelids open and shut and all my energy could only go to inhaling and exhaling ragged breaths. Eventually, everything slipped from my mind; the explosion, RD….. and the only thing I saw was darkness.

Agent Tailon, ISB Agent

"The _Avenger_ is gone, sir….." the scanning officer informed us, resulting in me dropping my comlink. All those weeks of repair, of friendly relations with the natives. I stare outside of the viewport, keeping calm and emotionless. It was almost symbolic, that the ship that brought the Equestrians and the Imperials together should crash and burn. Ironic, in a way. I turn to Zinel, who was staring at me. He then sighed, and turned on the intercom for the whole ship.

"Attention, all available transports, the is Admiral Zinel. I need all available ground troops to report to your battle stations. I want all scrambled TIEs to examine the wreckage, and Ground Troops to prepare for an assault." Zinel turned the intercom off, before looking over at me with narrowed eyes.

"It would seem that you have your war, Tailon."

Authors note: And thus ends the story of the Avenger and her crew. The battle for Equestria shall begin in the next chapter. Thank you guys so much for your support and dedication to my story! I really enjoy your guys comments and feedback :)


	15. Under Fire

**Chapter 13**

**Canterlot_,_Equestria**

**Noran Davil**

The explosion was enormous, even from miles away. The site of the Avenger rising up, and then falling again made my stomach turn with both sadness and rage. To see the magnificent and massive ship falling from the sky was simply disheartening.

I was sitting within the main hall of Celestia's castle, a large hall with her throne in the far back, a red carpet down the center, and beautiful window panes aligning the wall. Besides me, there were several members of Celestia's and Twilight's Royal Guard, as well as doctors and physicians. There were also all of the friendly Imperials, either helping the Doctors or lying on the ground being treated by them.

Despite only being shot in the shoulder, Varinth looked the worse of all the wounded. On top of the dent in his skull from Hyperspace jump that would lead us to Equestria, the force of the laser blast seemed to have put him in yet another coma, one that the Equestria Doctors doubted he would ever awaken from. Besides Varinth, the only other Imperial to have been shot was Caried Label, a staff officer who was shot through the back of his chair, square in the chest. He didn't make it.

The only remaining Imperials were Derek Millin, a fellow Combat Driver officer, and Maled Florence, a leading Technical Officer.

"What the heck just happened?!" Maled shouted as he watched the explosion from one of the stain glass windows. "That ship wasn't ready to be flown yet, were they mad?" Derek, who was tending to Varinth, came over to the window with me and Florence, biting his lip.

"Blast them all! It looks like Tailon couldn't take being stranded anymore. Either way, good riddance to the backstabbing little…." I place a hand on the fuming Officer's shoulder, trying to calm him down.

"Easy, Millan! We don't know what happened, and we for sure don't know who all was killed in the blast. We need to wait for the reports to come back." I then sigh as I remembered: we no longer had Imperial Intelligence, and answers wouldn't be coming any time soon. We would have to sit and wait.

That was, until Twilight burst into the hallway, followed by Celestia. Luna didn't come out. Celestia automatically turned to some of her and Twilight's Pegasus Guards, one of whom being Flying Colors, who nodded and left the room. Twilight came straight to me, but I was fortunate enough to get the first word in.

"Whats going on?" I asked the concerned looking Alicorn, who gave me a confused and distraught look.

"We saw the Destroyer go down… Luna and Celestia are organizing their guards and a militia. You see, Equestria doesn't HAVE an official military, besides the Wonderbolts, who are being alerted as we speak. We need to prepare Canterlot for an attack of some kind… hopefully, we can hold out." Even though she tried to sound confident, I could tell from her voice that even she seemed to be seriously doubting that hope.

"Well, is there anything we can do? We were Imperials, after all…." I ask her, which made her look up immediately.

"Yes, I was just getting to that! Celestia wanted to all to be in charge of different defenses, considering you would probably know what to expect, since you know their weapons better than us. Speaking of, though…. What do you think the Empire will do first?" I think for a second on her question, pondering the possibilities. Derek, however, was the first to respond.

"Well, considering their Star Destroyer just went down, the first thing they would do is land troops there, possibly see if there were any survivors. Otherwise, they would deploy any of their heavy vehicles onto an open field nearby." At this, Twilight's eyes widened, and her wings fluffed slightly in distress.

"The crash site? Oh no, we just sent Flying and the other guards to there!"

**Flying Colors, Twilight's Royal Guard**

The _Avenger_ had crashed into the same plane where it sat for many weeks. This time, however, one could barely call it a plane anymore. It was giant black crater, massive, filled with burning wreckage. The explosion was so big, that even the grass surrounding the crater was blackened, and all nearby life seemed to be dead.

"Celestia…." One of the pegasai guards next to me whispered, his face contorted in a mix of awe and horror. The only intact part of the Destroyer seemed to be the top third, which held the still majorly damaged bridge and ship rear. It was clear that nobody could have survived the initial wreck.

"Alright, search the remaining area, I want to know if any locals were hurt by the explosion, resulting in the 7 guards that accompanied me to go fly off in multiple directions. I flew down into the center of the crater, burning wreckage all around me. The ground and air was warm, like a campfire, only more intense. I walked throughout the ruins, finding destroyed rooms and halls scattered everywhere. The only remains of any of the crew was a charred and blackened Stormtrooper Helmet, bearing the blue mark over the visor of Captain Foren.

Suddenly, there was a loud screeching sound, which I automatically recalled was an Imperial Engine, much like the ones on the transports I helped attack. But this was different, in a way. It seemed much faster. Then, I saw them. Multiple of miniature shapes came into view from the sky, shooting past at lightning fast speeds. They were black in color, and seemed to be a ball with two flat, vertical wings on the side, forming what looked to be an H. There were so many of them, they dotted the sky like bees near a hive. The screeching they made echoed throughout the sky as they headed out. And they seemed to be heading towards…..

"Canterlot…." I breathed, my eyes widened as I saw the swarm of miniature ships heading towards the Capital City. I was about to fly into the air when I heard the screeching sound again, but this time much closer. I ducked behind a blackened steel wall as another black ship shot by, closer than all the others. I crouch a little more to the ground as another 7 or 8 ships screech past. When it looked like the coast was cleared, I made a small dash to the edge of the crater, where then I flew out into the dead tree line.

I darted from tree to tree, watching as more Imperial ships came from the sky, all heading in the direction of Canterlot. I take some deep breaths, feeling a slight panic attack come over me as I put a hoof to my chest in an attempt to control my breathing. Suddenly, i felt a hoof upon my shoulder, almost making me shout as I whirl around.

"Shh! Keep it down!" One of the other guards, a green male in the armor of Twilight's Guard, whispered, crouched to the ground similar to me. I gazed up at the sky, watching the ships dash by towards their Capital City.

"We found Captain Dust…. As well as Lady Dash!" I am up in a second, eyes wide as I ask him where they are. We dash as quickly as possible towards the area he said the two ponies were. I didn't question why they were there, or where they had come from. All that mattered at the moment was that they were here, and alive. When I arrived to where the Guard said they were, I froze, my blood turning to ice. Laying on the ground, surrounded by a few more Guards of Twilight and Celestia, lay Caramel and Rainbow Dash. Caramel looked worse for wear, bumps and bruises covering his orange body, especially on the back and head, as well as several burn marks. Lady Dash looked even worse, having all the qualities that Caramel had on top of what appeared to be a malnourished stomach. Both of their breathing was ragged, Caramel even mustering a cough as I trot over and kneel down.

"They are both in bad shape…. The Captain appears to have a broken leg, while Dash has a broken wing and possibly a concussion." The guard closest to me whispered, looking at me with deep, concerned eyes.

"Where is the closest place we can bring them? They need medical attention." I say to all those present, before giving me the most obvious answer: Ponyville.

"Alright, Ponyville is a good couple of miles away. Help me pick up the two of them." I whisper the command to the small group, who instantly went to work loading Dash and Dust onto mine and another Guard's backs. I look back at Carmel, who was on my back, as we begin our trek.

"Hang in there, buddy…."

**Noran Davil, Canterlot**

"TIE Fighters" I say out loud, lowering the Micro-Binoculars I was using.

"How many?" Maled asked, taking the Binoculars and peering out into the horizon. Millin, the Combat Driver Officer, was already out of the main palace with Princess Celestia, organizing where defensive positions needed to be placed and what to expect. The Equestrian military, if it was to be called that, consisted of a hundred of Celestia's Royal Guard and at least another hundred ponies who have come forth to answer the call to arms. 200 against the Empire. This battle was going to be a massacre.

"At least 4 squadrons…. 36 fighters total, a good 3 clicks away. No signs of shuttles… or bombers, which is good." I mutter, making Maled turn his head in disbelief.

"Which is good? Those fighters are going to strafe the city! Why waste bloody proton bombs when you can just fire at the streets! Heck, considering the number of defenses this city has, I wouldn't be surprised if they simply didn't send any transports. Fighters alone would be enough to bring this city to its knees." Maled cursed, handing back the binoculars to me as he punched the wall next to me. Then he wheels on me, looking at me with fearful eyes.

"We can not hold the city, Noran! We need to get out of here before we too are dead." I then wheel on Maled, shoving the binoculars into his surprised chest as I start to rush out of the main hall.

"If we can't win, then we will make this a loss the Empire will never forget!" I shout back, making some nervous Equestrian heads turn as I rush out of the Main Hall. By the time I was outside of the main palace, the TIE Fighters were within view. They were approaching at a very fast rate, and would be here within minutes. Looking around wildly, I saw to an extent of the protocols Millin had help set in place. Barricades made of carts and signs filled the alleys and open streets, as well as Equestrians running past in Gold and Silver armor. I asked a soldier running past where Celestia and Millin were.

"The market, follow the main road!" The soldier was obviously a female, her blue fur covered by scalings of the silver armor given to the militia. I dashed in that direction, noting all of the Guards shouting orders for citizens to clear the streets and militia to make ready. Citizens who were not a part of the militia were not necessarily in a panic yet, as most of them didn't even know what was about to happen. All they knew was that they needed to clear the streets and get inside. It wouldn't be enough, I thought sorrowfully to myself.

The market, located at the end of the main road, was a large square filled with booths and stalls, all abandoned. Any entrepreneurs or sellers had fled, as the Equestrian Military started using it as a command post.

"Chirp, I need you and your squad to take up positions along the North Road! Lemon, take you and your Earth Ponies to main alley ways and finish barricading them!" The commanding voice of Millin was heard above the shout and clamour of the other ponies. I turned and saw him, next to Celestia, giving out orders and directing ponies. Millin wasn't a field officer, but he sure was trying his hardest to seem as though he knew what he was doing.

"Millin! Celestia!" I shouted at them as a ran over, making their heads turn in response. "TIE Fighters! They are going to strafe the city!" Celestia looked at me confused, but Millin automatically understood. He looked to the skies, and saw the approaching fighters, just now coming into range.

"GET DOWN!" Millin screamed as the first wave of fighters started firing on the city. The green lasers came from the fighters, hitting the city in clean lines, as per regulation. Houses and streets both were consumed in sudden explosions and fire, the loud screeching of the TIEs just drowning out the explosions as they zoomed past. Celestia, who had never seen the power of the TIE fighter, was shocked, but instantly went to work on fixing the problem. Rising into the air using her wings, he horn started releasing a magic shield that started covering the market and palace as more TIE Fighters went by. At the sight of the sudden golden force field being risen, the pilots swerved and maneuvered to get out of the way. A few of the closer fighters didn't get the chance to, however, as they crashed headlong into it, their fighters instantly exploding upon impact. Celestia lowered herself to the ground, the shield still holding as the fighters began to circle it, occasionally firing at it to know affect.

"I can hold it…. But I don't know for how long." Celestia said, already looking a little dazed. Suddenly, a pony ran up, seeming to have come from the front of the city: right were the TIE's had struck.

"Those…. Things just lit up three blocks! Civilians, guards…. Many are wounded." Millin was stunned for a second, before I interjected.

"Get as many wounded as you can back to this command point! I'll go with you." Millin gave me a silent nod of appreciation as I start running with the pony down the street. The strafe run had occurred near the train station, which was now destroyed and burning, as well as nearly 3 blocks of buildings. Militia were already there, dragging some wounded ponies onto their backs. I shouted at them to take them to the Market as quickly as possible, in which then they nodded and proceeded to do as ordered. I turned to one of the Guards in charge, who was searching through the rubble of one of the destroyed buildings, a look of horror and anguish upon his face.

"You need to clear all of these civilians out of here! Get them to the palace." The Guard, his eyes blank from what could be assumed was shock, nodded blankly as he started running about issuing new orders. I sigh as I go and assist a pony lying on the ground, struggling to breath and coughing.

To think I used to be a part of this…. A part of the Empire. I thought I was doing good, and bringing justice. But this was the true face of the wrath of the Empire. I winced, blinking some tears from my eyes as I scooped the unconscious pony into my arms and started running back to the Market.

**_The Torrent,_Admiral Zinel's Flagship**

**Agent Tailon, ISB Agent**

"Admiral, the Landing Craft are ready to be deployed." An officer reported to Zinel, who was currently with me in the Strategy room on the Bridge. Zinel was studying up on the map, and I turned to the officer, nodding.

"Excellent. Have the fighters cleared a place for them to land within the city as I requested?" I stated, feeling nothing but pride. This was my moment to come forth, and be seen as the leader I always desired to be. The officer hesitated, before shaking his head.

"Somewhat, sir. The fighters began their run, and were able to clear a small bit of the southern edge of the city. Then, there was an interference. A force field of some kind was raised, destroying two of our fighters and making the rest of them unable to commit any more damage." I cock my head when he said this, before cursing out loud. Zinel turned, raising an eyebrow.

"My, Tailon. You sure do get angry when things don't go your way." He sneered, making my eyes narrow into a glare towards him. I hope I wouldn't be stuck with this smug son of a nerf herder, I thought incredulously. He ignored my glare, though, and started plotting out certain landing positions.

"I have several artillery that can land on the ground near the cliff this palace sits on, and start bombarding that shield. Once it is down, we can start landing some forces to the south of the city, right near the area cleared out by the…." Suddenly, the door to the Command Hub opened, another officer entering.

"Admiral! Multiple Star Destroyers are emerging from hyperspace!" At this, Zinel's head shot up, and he dashed from the Strategic room into the Command Hub. I followed close by, coming to the view port. Sure enough, 4 Star Destroyers emerge from Hyperspace, coming right in front of us. Along with them came 2 Assault Transports and at least 5 Gozanti Class Cruisers.

"Admiral, the leading Star Destroyer, The _Adrian_, is hailing us!" The communications officer shouted, making Zinel calmly walk over to him. He activated the responder, and a hologram image of a younger officer, probably in his early 30s, came in front of him.

"Admiral Zinel. I am Captain Fulcron, and am in command of this fleet. In the name of Grand Moff Gann, as well as the Empire, we shall be taking over all operations involving 'Equestria'." The officer said his words with confidence and zeal, giving a triumphant smirk to the now dumbfounded Zinel. The Admiral, who before wanted nothing with this world, gaze the Captain a glare and snarled.

"By whose authority do you have to take over the reigns of this operation? My jurisdiction falls under Tarkin, not Gann!" At his outburst, the young Captain' left eye twitched, but he remained fully confident.

"By order of the Emperor himself, which I dearly HOPE your jurisdiction inevitably falls under. He gave Gann his personal approval to take over all operations concerning this planet." Just then the hologram turned slightly, facing me.

"Aw, and you must be Tailon! The valiant hero of the Empire. I have orders to place you in partial command of my ground forces for this battle." At this, I smile widely. Everything was falling into place. Zinel walked off, asking something to an officer in the console pit. He returned shortly after, his face red.

"Everything checks out. I have orders to give you a shuttle to the _Adrian_, and to return to Geonosis…." The Admiral looked as though he wanted to say more, but restrained himself, all the more giving the Captain a bigger smirk.

"Excellent! I shall be looking forward to you being on board my ship, Tailon." And with that, the transmission shut off. Zinel stood there for a few seconds, before changing the frequency on the com station.

"Go to the main hangar and take one of the Shuttles…." That was the last thing Zinel said to me before turning on the com, recalling all fighters from the planet's surface.

**Noran Davil, Canterlot**

"Noran, can you read me, over?" I had just placed a wounded pegasus down in one of the shops in the market that was being used as a makeshift hospital as my com sounded off. It was Maled.

"I can hear you loud and clear, Maled. Whats going on?" I leave the building, watching as several more civilians come over to Millin, asking to join in the militia effort.

"Something just happened….. The TIEs are retreating! They are pulling back to orbit." I look up to the sky and, sure enough, the TIE Fighters stop their circling of the shield and all begin returning to the Star Destroyer in orbit.

"Do you think they are regrouping? Planning to stage another attack?" I ask, getting a little feedback as Maled quickly replies back.

"I doubt it…. Something bigger just happened. I'm just a technician, but I don't have a single reason for them to pull back. It is too soon for them to have run out of fuel…" But then Maled stops, a small bit of crackling on the reciever meaning he was still on.

"Hold on…. I'm using the Micro-Binoculars to get a closer lo….. By the force!" Maled suddenly shouted.

"What is it? Maled, speak to me!" I shout into the Receiver, only to get a solemn reply.

"The Star Destroyer in orbit looks to be pulling out…. And is being replaced by 4 more."


End file.
